Tushar C. Patel, M.B., Ch.B.

This study is being done to:

1. Create a registry of patients having or at risk for cancer of the liver or bile ducts (also known as hepatocellular carcinoma or cholangiocarcinoma), or gallbladder cancer, and those individuals who have normal risk factors in order to improve the ability to diagnose and treat these cancers. We will use information in the medical record in this registry including how far advanced the cancer is (stage) and what treatments are used to treat the cancer.

2. A second purpose of this study is to obtain blood and tissue samples from participants having or at risk for developing cancer of the liver or bile ducts or gallbladder cancer to be used for future research testing. Future testing may include searching for changes in the genetic material (DNA and other molecules).

The purpose of this study is to test the effect of human bile on the stability and durability of new materials that could be used for the manufacture of biliary stents.  

The purposes of this study are to establish breath sample collection and analysis techniques, to establish reference ranges for selected clinical populations, and to assess correlations between breath analysis and presence or absence of clinical or pathological evidence of disease.

This study will collect and store samples of tissue and blood for current and future research studies on Liver and Biliary Tumors.

The purpose of this study is to obtain de-identified, clinically-characterized whole blood specimens for use in developing and evaluating the performance of new biomarker assays for detection of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

The goals of this study are to establish the role of circulating nucleic acid based biomarkers in early diagnosis, prognosis or treatment response in human diseases. These studies will determine whether alterations in circulating nucleic acids can distinguish between healthy and cancer tissue. 

This study is being done to collect and store samples of blood from patients with liver disease for a research study to be able to find a new and better way to detect liver cancer.

The purpose of this study is evaluation of tumoral markers at the time of transplant to assess recurrence risk, and assessment of tumor sensitivity to a panel of candidate therapeutics as a guide to adjunct or therapeutic therapies for recurrent hepatocellular cancers (HCC).  

This pilot clinical trial studies the best dose of erlotinib hydrochloride and to see how well it works in preventing liver cancer in patients with scarring (cirrhosis) of the liver undergoing surgery. Erlotinib hydrochloride may help to inhibit the development of fibrous tissue and prevent liver cancer from forming in patients with cirrhosis of the liver.