Author: Alex Strauss

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    Special Protein May Impact Mesothelioma Outcome

    ByAlex Strauss

    Mesothelioma patients whose cells express a protein called CD9 are likely to do better and live longer than those who don’t produce this special protein. That news comes out of a laboratory at Hiroshima University in Japan. CD9 is a cell surface glycoprotein involved in cell growth, adhesion and mobility. Its expression is associated with several other types of cancer. To measure the impact CD9 expression has on mesothelioma cells, a research team at the Institute of Biomedical and Health Sciences in Hiroshima first measured what happened to mesothelioma cells in the lab when CD9 expression was knocked down through gene manipulation. In those cell samples, knockdown of CD9 resulted in more mobility for the cancer cells. The team then examined…

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    FDG/PET Best for Mesothelioma Diagnosis and Prognosis

    ByAlex Strauss

    When it comes to diagnosing mesothelioma and predicting patient prognosis, Positron Emission Tomography (PET) using a radioactive tracer may be the most effective imaging modality. That’s the finding of a new study out of Japan. Mesothelioma is a fast-growing cancer that starts on the mesothelial membranes which line the chest cavity or wrap around the lungs and heart. It is caused by past exposure to asbestos, most often in an industrial setting. The greater the level of exposure, the greater the likelihood that mesothelioma will occur. Because it is highly resistant to conventional treatments, early diagnosis is critical. Unfortunately, mesothelioma can also be challenging to diagnose. If patient history and symptoms suggest mesothelioma, imaging modalities like computed tomography (CT) and X-rays can…

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    Heated Chemo in Mesothelioma Challenged by New Study

    ByAlex Strauss

    A procedure that involves washing heated chemotherapy drugs through the open body cavity after mesothelioma surgery may not be as helpful as some mesothelioma experts had hoped. A study on hyperthermic chemotherapy perfusion conducted by researchers in the thoracic surgery department at the David Geffen School of Medicine suggests that most mesothelioma cells lines are relatively unaffected by heat. The laboratory study included three kinds of mesothelioma cell lines, along with lung cancer cells, hamster-derived ovarian cells, and normal lung fibroblasts. First, the growth rate of each type of cell was measured in the lab. Next, to test the impact of heat alone and different types of cells, the cells were exposed to 37, 42 and 45 degrees centigrade for 20, 40 or…

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    New Agents May Enhance Mesothelioma Therapy

    ByAlex Strauss

    Mesothelioma is a deadly cancer of the internal membranes that line the chest and abdomen and encase the heart. Once cancer has started on these membranes, it is extremely difficult to keep it from spreading to nearby organs. Conventional therapies, including chemotherapy and radiotherapy, have little effect on mesothelioma. Now, two new studies out of Japan say there may be a way to change that. One study reports on an agent that may improve the cancer-killing power of radiotherapy. The other focused on the use of viruses to enhance the power of standard chemotherapy. For the radiotherapy study, researchers in the Department of Thoracic Surgery at Okyama University examined the impact of manipulating microRNA molecules inside cells. In a previous study,…

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    New Radiotherapy Preserves Healthy Lung in Mesothelioma

    ByAlex Strauss

    A method for targeted delivery of radiotherapy may be safer than conventional radiotherapy for slowing the spread of malignant pleural mesothelioma in patients who have had surgery. Mesothelioma is a virulent cancer caused by exposure to asbestos. Although it can take up to 40 year to develop, when it does, it often spreads quickly across the mesothelium which surrounds the lungs. For most patients, prognosis is poor unless the spread of mesothelioma can be slowed down or stopped. Some patients undergo a surgical procedure called pleurectomy/decortication to remove the diseased pleural lining and as much of the cancerous tissue as possible from the lungs or chest wall. The concern following any cancer surgery is that the cancer can re-grow from cells that…

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    New Orphan Drug Approved for Mesothelioma

    ByAlex Strauss

    Patients suffering from malignant pleural mesothelioma, a virulent asbestos-linked cancer, now have another drug option to choose from. Amatuximab, an investigational cancer drug made by Morphotek, has been granted orphan drug status by the FDA. The Orphan Drug Act allows the FDA to designate a drug as an orphan drug if it is used to treat fewer than 200,000 people in the U.S. Any illness that affects fewer than 200,000 people is considered a rare disease. Mesothelioma is one of the rarest of rare diseases, claiming the lives of about 2,500 Americans annually. Without the Orphan Drug Act, there is less incentive for a company like Morphotek to even work to develop drugs for a disease like mesothelioma. Mesothelioma is a…

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    Medicinal Plant for Mesothelioma?

    ByAlex Strauss

    A new study suggests that a plant used for centuries in Indian Ayurvedic medicine may be a powerful weapon in the fight against deadly malignant mesothelioma. The bioactive compound Withaferin A (WA) is isolated from the root of Withania somnifera, a plant in the nightshade family also known as Indian ginseng.  A number of previous scientific studies have found evidence to suggest that WA has anti-inflammatory, immuno-modulatory, anti-angiogenic, and anti-cancer properties. In the latest study, published online in the open-access peer-reviewed journal PLos One, researchers at the Karmanos Cancer Institute in Detroit tested the compound in live mice (in vivo) as well as in mesothelioma cells taken from human patients (in vitro). Their objective was to determine whether WA would have…

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    Mesothelioma Study Suggests Trimodal Falls Short

    ByAlex Strauss

    A team of Swiss doctors have added their names to the list mesothelioma experts who believe that the intense trimodal treatment approach including extrapleural pneumonectomy (EPP) is not the best choice for most patients. Malignant mesothelioma is a cancer that starts in the membranes around organs, most often the lungs. Extrapleural pneumonectomy (EPP) is a radical surgical approach for pleural mesothelioma that includes removing not only the diseased mesothelium but also the nearest lung, other body linings, and all or part of the diaphragm. It is often preceded by chemotherapy and followed by radiotherapy.  Although this trimodal approach carries a high risk of serious complications and even death, it has resulted in long term survival for some mesothelioma patients. Even with aggressive…

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    Australian Electricians Fear Mesothelioma Risk

    ByAlex Strauss

    Calling the modification of electrical meter boxes a “game changer”, an official from Australia’s largest electricians union says workers should refuse to do it until the dangerous boxes have been inspected. Allen Hicks, Assistant National Secretary of the Electrical Trades Union, told the Sydney Morning Herald that asbestos-containing meter boxes are being modified more frequently because of renovations and that too many workers are not adequately protected against mesothelioma and other asbestos related diseases. The warning, which centers on the meter boxes in homes built before 1983, was issued after a New South Wales electrical company instructed its workers to wear masks around the boxes to minimize asbestos and mesothelioma risk. When the Electrical Trades Union learned of the warning, they advised…

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    Study Demonstrates Mesothelioma Risk from Shipbuilding

    ByAlex Strauss

    There’s more evidence of the dangers of shipbuilding in the early 20th century.  A new study out of Italy found a “high incidence of mesothelioma” among men who worked as shipbuilders in the 1940’s, 50’s and 60’s in Monfalcone. Mesothelioma is an aggressive cancer of internal membranes caused by exposure to asbestos. In order to track the incidence of the disease among Italian shipbuilders, a pair of researchers from Italy’s Center for the Study of Environmental Cancer examined the hiring records of the Monfalcone shipyard in 1942 and compared them with archived health records in the area’s hospitals decades later. A total of 2,776 people were hired to work in the Monfalcone shipyards in 1942. According to the Pathological Anatomy Unit archives…