Combined Chemotherapy With or Without Zoledronic Acid for Patients With Osteosarcoma

연구 개요

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. Giving more than one drug (combination chemotherapy) may kill more tumor cells. Zoledronic acid may stop the growth of tumor cells in bone. Giving chemotherapy with or without zoledronic acid before surgery may make the tumor smaller and reduce the amount of normal tissue that needs to be removed. Giving these treatments after surgery may kill any tumor cells that remain after surgery. It is not yet known whether giving combination chemotherapy together with zoledronic acid is more effective than combination chemotherapy alone in treating osteosarcoma. PURPOSE: This randomized phase III trial is studying combination chemotherapy and zoledronic acid to see how well they work compared with combination chemotherapy alone in treating patients with osteosarcoma.