Oncology Specialists, S.C.
Two Locations - One Number: 866-611-1991 - Click Here to Call

To contact Oncology Specialists about clinical trials, fill out the form below.






Oncology Specialists, S.C.
Lutheran General Advanced Care Center
1700 Luther Ln
Park Ridge, Illinois 60068
866-611-1991
Map and Directions

Oncology Specialists, S.C.
Oak Mill Center
7900 Milwaukee Ave Ste 16
Niles, Illinois 60714
866-611-1991
Map and Directions

Main & after hours phone numbers
for all locations:
P: 866-611-1991
F: 847-318-2905

2007 International Melanoma Congress

Clinical Research at Oncology Specialists

We are committed to active and extensive participation in clinical research. This allows us to offer a broad range of clinical research studies at our Chicago-area facilities, including studies of breast cancer, lung cancer, prostate cancer, colon cancer, lymphoma, melanoma, and sarcoma. We offer clinical trials that allow our patients access to investigational medications.

Clinical trials provide important information about the effectiveness of new cancer treatments and prevention. It is important to understand that while routine medical care is designed to help the patient, care provided in a clinical trial is also designed to learn more about disease and treatment.

Clinical trials help develop improved treatments, and patients enrolled in the clinical trial will be the first to benefit from these improvements as they are identified. The information obtained from clinical trials is aimed at progressing in the fight against cancer. Without clinical trials and without the subjects who are willing to enroll in these trials, our treatments for cancer would never improve.

Back to top

Oncology Specialists Research Institute

This is our in-house department for the conduct of our Chicago-area clinical trials. Research programs provide our physicians with opportunities to study particular diseases in depth and to offer new treatments to patients who qualify.

Our research department is staffed by experienced professionals who are knowledgeable in both the management of oncologic disease from the clinical nursing perspective and in the management and reporting of research data.

We currently have active research programs in these areas (program directors are identified in parentheses):

In addition, our physicians have been instrumental in the development of the Lutheran General Hospital clinical research program and its Biologics/Vaccine Laboratory.

Back to top

Leukemia/Lymphoma

The lymphoma program at Oncology Specialists, S.C. is a comprehensive program. It is focused on providing excellent patient care and on implementing state-of-the-art clinical trials that incorporate novel therapies in all stages of the disease.

Current open studies include:

  1. Clofarabine in patients with relapsed or refractory lymphoma: This study enrolls patients who have lymphoma and have failed any or all kinds of prior therapies. Clofarabine is an active agent in leukemia, and there is a suggestion that it could potentially have substantial activity in lymphoma. This is a phase I/II trial. The drug is given intravenously for five days, and this is repeated every 28 days for 6 cycles. Patients with any kind of lymphoma are encouraged to investigate their eligibility. This study was designed by Dr. Nabhan.
  2. VRCD program for low-grade lymphoma. This study looks at patients with newly diagnosed low-grade lymphoma. It looks at the combination of Velcade, Rituximab, oral Cytoxan, and oral Decadron. Velcade is a novel compound that is very active in multiple myeloma and this study looks at the synergistic effect of this drug with other combinations. This study was designed by Dr. Nabhan.
  3. FCCAM for CLL: This is a very attractive trial for patients with Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL). Recent studies have confirmed that CLL is a heterogeneous disease, where some patients have better prognoses than others. Unfavorable prognostic features include those with specific chromosomal abnormalities, the unmutated immunoglobulin variable heavy chain gene, and over-expression of a newly identified protein, namely ZAP-70. Eligible patients include those with early stage disease (stages I or II) who have some of these unfavorable prognostic features or advanced stage patients (stages III and IV) regardless of their prognostic features. All enrolled patients will receive therapy with Fludarabine and Cyclophosphamide for a total of 6 cycles. Patients who have residual disease on the molecular level after completing this combination therapy will be eligible to receive Campath (a humanized antibody against CLL cells) to try to eradicate this disease. Patients who have no residual disease molecularly after completing this combination are observed without further treatment. This study is open in conjunction with Stanford University.
  4. Patients with follicular lymphoma are encouraged enroll in this registry trial, which reviews patterns of care for patients with follicular lymphoma throughout the United States. All patients with this histology are eligible regardless of the type of therapy that they might receive. The study is open at many other centers within the United States and it is hoped that information obtained from this trial will aid future diagnosed patients in their treatment decisions.
  5. Patients with Burkitt's and/or Burkitt's-like lymphoma may be eligible to participate in a trial that is open at our center as well as a few other institutions within the Chicago area. The study incorporates treatment with high doses of Rituxan with Doxil and other combination chemotherapies in the management of this difficult disease.

The lymphoma/leukemia program at Oncology Specialists continues to look for attractive studies for our patients. Through participation in clinical trials, we may make progress toward curing this disease. If you have any questions about these studies or this program, please contact Dr. Chad Nabhan at (847) 268-8200.

Back to top

Prostate Cancer

The Prostate Cancer Clinical Research Program started two years ago with a focus on exploring novel therapies and applications for patients who fail hormonal therapy and have refractory and androgen-independent diseases. In addition, the Prostate Clinic is a multidisciplinary clinic where patients get the opinion of medical oncology, radiation oncology, and urology specialists simultaneously, thus allowing for a comprehensive approach to their disease.

The following is a list of the clinical research studies that are currently open at our institution:

  1. For patients who are chemotherapy-naïve (i.e. no prior chemotherapy) or whose chemotherapy was last given over 3 months prior to enrollment, a study that looks at the activity of the Provenge vaccine is currently available. This is an immunotherapeutic approach to target resistant prostate cancer cells.
  2. For chemotherapy-naïve patients, a study that looks at the activity of Erlotinib (Tarceva) is available. Erlotinib is an oral agent that antagonizes the epidermal growth factor receptor that is usually over-expressed in hormone refractory patients. This receptor may play a role in the development of this malignancy.
  3. For patients who require systemic chemotherapy, a multi-center national study is currently available. The study compares Taxotere/Prednisone, which is considered the standard of care, to Taxotere and high-dose vitamin D, which is the experimental arm. This is based on preliminary data that suggest enhanced activity for high-dose vitamin D in this disease.
  4. For patients who are on any systemic chemotherapy and have achieved their maximum response or who have not received chemotherapy in 3 months and have not progressed in the interim, a maintenance study is available that looks at the ability of GM-CSF(Leukine) to maintain that response and delay the need for any systemic therapy.
  5. For patients who are on chemotherapy but failing, a study is available that looks at adding an oral agent (Sorafenib) to chemotherapy. This oral agent is approved for metastatic renal cell cancer with a theoretical activity in prostate malignancy.
  6. For patients who have failed all therapies, a study that combines Gleevec and Sorafenib will open in few weeks. This is an oral regimen that could have some activity, but studies are needed first to explore safety of this combination therapy.

Additional studies are in development. The prostate program is committed to bringing our patients state-of-the-art novel therapies.

Back to top

Should You Participate in a Clinical Trial?

You and your physician should evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of taking part in a clinical research study. After careful consideration, you will make the decision that is right for you.

Without clinical trials, none of the current therapies that are available would have been approved for patient use. Proposed and ongoing studies are subject to review and monitoring by the Food and Drug Administration and institutional review boards, as well as by their sponsors and the participating physicians.

Patient care during our Lutheran General Hospital clinical trials is continuously monitored to assure a high degree of patient safety. And, of course, any patient may withdraw at any time from a trial in which he or she is participating, without giving a specific reason.

To learn more about clinical research studies, see www.cancer.gov/clinicaltrials.

Here are some pros and cons of taking part in a clinical trial:

Pros:

Cons:

If you would like to have more information about any of our Chicago-area clinical trials in breast cancer, lung cancer, prostate cancer, colon cancer, lymphoma, melanoma, and sarcoma, or if you would like to be considered for participation in a trial, use the form below to contact us. The clinical research program coordinator for your area of interest will respond within two business days.






Back to top