Recurrent or Refractory Extragonadal Germ Cell Tumors

Current Clinical Trials

Note: Some citations in the text of this section are followed by a level of evidence. The PDQ editorial boards use a formal ranking system to help the reader judge the strength of evidence linked to the reported results of a therapeutic strategy. (Refer to the PDQ summary on Levels of Evidence ¹ for more information.)

A randomized controlled trial compared conventional doses of salvage chemotherapy to high-dose chemotherapy with autologous marrow rescue in 263 patients with recurrent or refractory germ cell tumors. Of the 263 patients, 43 of whom had extragonadal primary tumors, more toxic effects and treatment-related deaths were seen in the high-dose arm without any improvement in response rate or overall survival.[1][Level of evidence: 1iiA]

Check for U.S. clinical trials from NCI's list of cancer clinical trials that are now accepting patients with recurrent extragonadal germ cell tumor ². The list of clinical trials can be further narrowed by location, drug, intervention, and other criteria.

General information about clinical trials is also available from the NCI Web site ³.

References

1. Pico JL, Rosti G, Kramar A, et al.: A randomised trial of high-dose chemotherapy in the salvage treatment of patients failing first-line platinum chemotherapy for advanced germ cell tumours. Ann Oncol 16 (7): 1152-9, 2005.  [PUBMED Abstract]