National Cancer Institute National Cancer Institute
U.S. National Institutes of Health National Cancer Institute
NCI Home Cancer Topics Clinical Trials Cancer Statistics Research & Funding News About NCI
Clinical Trials (PDQ®)
Patient VersionHealth Professional Version
Last Modified: 2/15/2005     First Published: 10/1/1999  
Page Options
Print This Page  Print This Page
E-Mail This Document  E-Mail This Document
Clinical Trial Questions?

Get Help:

1-800-4-CANCER or

LiveHelp online chat

Quick Links
Help Using the NCI Clinical Trials Search Form

Educational Materials About Clinical Trials

About NCI's Cancer Clinical Trials Registry

Dictionary of Cancer Terms

NCI Drug Dictionary
Phase II Study of Sequential High-Dose Melphalan, Busulfan, and Cyclophosphamide Followed By Peripheral Blood Stem Cell Rescue, Interferon alfa, Pamidronate, and Thalidomide in Patients With Multiple Myeloma

Alternate Title
Basic Trial Information
Objectives
Entry Criteria
Expected Enrollment
Outline
Trial Contact Information
Registry Information

Alternate Title

Combination Chemotherapy, Peripheral Stem Cell Transplantation, Biological Therapy, Pamidronate and Thalidomide in Treating Patients With Multiple Myeloma

Basic Trial Information

PhaseTypeStatusAgeSponsorProtocol IDs
Phase IITreatmentClosed65 and underNCICHNMC-IRB-99021
NCI-G99-1583, NCT00004088

Objectives

  1. Determine the feasibility and toxic effects of high-dose melphalan, busulfan, and cyclophosphamide followed by autologous peripheral blood stem cell rescue, interferon alfa, and pamidronate in patients with responsive or stable, low-bulk multiple myeloma.
  2. Determine the response rate and progression-free and overall survival of patients treated with this regimen.
  3. Determine the feasibility of adding thalidomide to interferon alfa and pamidronate in patients who are not in complete remission (CR) 6 months after the second course of high-dose chemotherapy.
  4. Determine whether administration of thalidomide can increase the CR rate in patients who are not in CR 6 months after the second course of high-dose chemotherapy and determine its effect on progression-free and overall survival of these patients.
  5. Determine the pharmacokinetics of busulfan and cyclophosphamide and correlate the pharmacokinetics with the toxic effects of these drugs and outcome in these patients.
  6. Determine the effect of thalidomide on microvascular density of bone marrow and correlate these possible effects with outcome in these patients.
  7. Determine the cytogenetics, gene rearrangement, and fluorescence in situ hybridization in baseline and post treatment bone marrow and blood specimens and correlate the presence/persistence of these features with treatment outcome in these patients.

Entry Criteria

Disease Characteristics:

  • Histologically proven stage I-III multiple myeloma
    • Less than 18 months since diagnosis
    • Smoldering myeloma allowed if there is evidence of progressive disease requiring therapy
      • At least 25% increase in M protein levels or Bence Jones excretion
      • Hemoglobin no greater than 10.5 g/dL
      • Hypercalcemia
      • Frequent infections
      • Rise in serum creatinine above normal on 2 separate occasions
    • Nonquantifiable monoclonal proteins allowed if other criteria for multiple myeloma or smoldering myeloma are met


  • Response/status after induction therapy:
    • Responding or stable disease AND no greater than 40% myelomatous involvement of bone marrow


  • No Waldenstrom's macroglobulinemia


Prior/Concurrent Therapy:

Biologic therapy:

  • Not specified

Chemotherapy:

  • See Disease Characteristics
  • No more than 3 prior chemotherapy regimens
  • At least 4 weeks since prior chemotherapy

Endocrine therapy:

  • Not specified

Radiotherapy:

  • At least 4 weeks since prior radiotherapy

Surgery:

  • Not specified

Patient Characteristics:

Age:

  • 65 and under

Performance status:

  • Karnofsky 80-100%

Life expectancy:

  • Not specified

Hematopoietic:

  • See Disease Characteristics
  • Absolute neutrophil count greater than 1,500/mm3
  • Platelet count greater than 100,000/mm3

Hepatic:

  • Bilirubin no greater than 1.5 mg/dL
  • SGOT and SGPT less than 2.5 times upper limit of normal
  • Hepatitis B antigen or hepatitis C RNA negative

Renal:

  • See Disease Characteristics
  • Creatinine no greater than 1.4 mg/dL
  • Creatinine clearance greater than 65 mL/min

Cardiovascular:

  • Cardiac ejection fraction at least 50% by MUGA or echocardiogram

Pulmonary:

  • FEV1 greater than 60%
  • DLCO greater than 50% of predicted lower limit

Other:

  • Not pregnant
  • Negative pregnancy test
  • Fertile patients must use effective contraception
  • HIV negative
  • No other medical or psychosocial problems that would increase patient risk
  • No other malignancy within past 5 years except nonmelanomatous skin cancer or carcinoma in situ of the cervix
  • No known hypersensitivity to filgrastim (G-CSF) or E. coli-derived proteins

Expected Enrollment

A total of 70 patients will be accrued for this study within approximately 2.5 years.

Outline

Patients receive cyclophosphamide IV over 2 hours on day 1 and filgrastim (G-CSF) subcutaneously (SC) or IV twice a day beginning on day 2 and continuing until peripheral blood stem cells (PBSCs) are collected. PBSCs are collected beginning on day 10.

Patients receive high-dose melphalan IV on day -1. PBSCs are reinfused on day 0. G-CSF is administered IV or SC daily beginning on day 1 and continuing until blood counts recover. Between 8 and 14 weeks later, patients receive high-dose busulfan IV every 6 hours on days -7 to -4 and cyclophosphamide IV over 2 hours on days -3 and -2. PBSCs are reinfused on day 0 and G-CSF is administered IV or SC daily until blood counts recover.

Patients with responding or stable disease after chemotherapy receive maintenance therapy with interferon alfa beginning 14-20 weeks after day 0 of the second course of chemotherapy. Interferon alfa is administered SC 3 times a week for 3 years. Patients also receive pamidronate IV every 4 weeks until disease progression. Patients who are not in complete remission (CR) 6 months after completing the second course of chemotherapy receive oral thalidomide daily for a maximum of 1 year or for 3 months after achieving CR.

Patients are followed monthly for 1 year, every 3 months for 1 year, and then periodically thereafter.

Trial Contact Information

Trial Lead Organizations

City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center

Clinical Trials Office - New Patient Services
Ph: 800-826-4673

Registry Information
Official Title Sequential High-Dose Melphalan and Busulfan/Cyclophosphamide Followed by Peripheral Blood Progenitor Cell Rescue, Interferon/Thalidomide and Pamidronate for Patients with Multiple Myeloma
Trial Start Date 1999-05-10
Registered in ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00004088
Date Submitted to PDQ 1999-09-03
Information Last Verified 2005-02-15
NCI Grant/Contract Number P30-CA33572

Note: The purpose of most clinical trials listed in this database is to test new cancer treatments, or new methods of diagnosing, screening, or preventing cancer. Because all potentially harmful side effects are not known before a trial is conducted, dose and schedule modifications may be required for participants if they develop side effects from the treatment or test. The therapy or test described in this clinical trial is intended for use by clinical oncologists in carefully structured settings, and may not prove to be more effective than standard treatment. A responsible investigator associated with this clinical trial should be consulted before using this protocol.

Back to TopBack to Top

A Service of the National Cancer Institute
Department of Health and Human Services National Institutes of Health USA.gov