Clinical Trials

The Morgan Welch Inflammatory Research Program is committed to finding what causes inflammatory breast cancer and identifying new treatment options for women with inflammatory breast cancer. We are conducting a number of treatment based studies and a wide variety of lab based studies to understand this disease better.

Tumor Registry

Protocol 2006-1072: Inflammatory Breast Cancer (IBC) – M Cristofanilli
The goal of this research study is to collect blood and tissue samples and clinical data from patients with untreated newly diagnosed inflammatory breast cancer. The blood and tissue samples and clinical data are stored in a research tissue bank for experiments that probe the molecular biology and genetic secrets of inflammatory breast cancer.

Clinical Trials

Protocol 2007-0448: A Randomized, Multicenter, Phase III Study Comparing the Combination of Pazopanib and Lapatinib versus Lapatinib Monotherapy in Patients with ErbB2 Over-Expressing Inflammatory Breast Cancer – M Cristofanilli
Protocol 2007-0766: A Phase I-II Study of R115777 (Tipifarnib, Zarnestra) Plus Sequential Weekly Paclitaxel Followed by Dose-Dense Doxorubicin and Cyclophosphamide in Patients with Stage IIB-IIIC Breast Cancer – M Cristofanilli
Protocol 2007-0818: Phase II Study of Neoadjuvant Lapatinib plus Chemotherapy (sequential FEC75 and Paclitaxel) in Women with Inflammatory Breast Cancer Whose Tumors Overexpress ErbB2 (her2/neu) - M Cristofanilli
Protocol 2006-0280: Phase II study of purging of CTCs from metastatic breast cancer patients – N Ueno

For information about enrolling in clinical trials contact Jie Willey, MSN, 713-792-3965.

Phase I Studies

M. D. Anderson has a program dedicated to the latest cutting edge therapies in testing. The Clinical Center for Targeted Therapy conducts innovative Phase I trials (early drug trials) with new drugs that may eventually improve the management of cancer. It
doesn’t mean there are no other chemotherapies you can use, just the opposite! It usually means you are in good shape and might be a better candidate for one of the newer, more targeted therapies rather than traditional therapies.

Stem Cell Transplant

For a certain population, patients after completing their initial therapy or have responding metastatic disease, stem cell transplant may be option with the goal to reduce the chance of recurrence.