Lung Fluid Tests May Lead to Earlier Mesothelioma Diagnosis
Using the free-floating cancer cells present in lung-fluid to diagnose malignant mesothelioma may lead to earlier detection and better outcomes. That is the conclusion of cancer researchers at Stockholm’s Karolinska University Hospital. The team’s goal was to evaluate the established criteria for cytopathological diagnosis of mesothelioma, i.e. diagnosis using cells found in fluid (effusions) instead of cells from a tissue biopsy. In a newly published article in the Archives of Pathological and Laboratory Medicine, the researchers observe, “Despite the difficulties in recognizing malignant cells present in those early effusions, they are often the first available biologic material for diagnosis.” Diagnosing Pleural Mesothelioma Malignant pleural mesothelioma, a rare but fast-growing cancer associated with asbestos exposure, is notoriously difficult to diagnose. Diagnosis … Continue reading Lung Fluid Tests May Lead to Earlier Mesothelioma Diagnosis
Peritoneal Mesothelioma Case Highlights Importance of Genetic Testing
The case of a peritoneal mesothelioma patient who was diagnosed at just 45-years-old is drawing attention to the role of genetics in this aggressive asbestos-linked malignancy. Sometimes referred to as “asbestos cancer”, malignant mesothelioma is almost always connected with known exposure to the fibrous mineral—often in a work environment. But even though most mesothelioma cases can be traced back to asbestos, not all asbestos-exposed people go on to develop malignant mesothelioma. Because of this, scientists began to believe that, in mesothelioma as in so many other types of cancer, there were likely other factors at play. Early Mesothelioma, Genes, and Asbestos Exposure In most cases, mesothelioma takes decades to develop, meaning that most patients are not diagnosed with mesothelioma until they … Continue reading Peritoneal Mesothelioma Case Highlights Importance of Genetic Testing
Mesothelioma Diagnosis: Lung Fluid Testing Has its Limits
Lung fluid tests for malignant mesothelioma are accurate less than half the time according to cancer researchers at Australia’s Royal Melbourne Hospital. The production of excess lung fluid (pleural effusions) is a common side effect of mesothelioma, as well as a number of other malignant and non-malignant conditions. In mesothelioma patients, this buildup of fluid often leads to breathlessness and chest pain. Because this fluid can contain cells from a growing tumor, doctors have used lung fluid testing, also known as cytologic analysis, to identify certain types of cancer, including pleural mesothelioma. But a new study published in the Internal Medicine Journal suggests that, especially with mesothelioma, lung fluid testing is only moderately effective and must be combined with other … Continue reading Mesothelioma Diagnosis: Lung Fluid Testing Has its Limits
Surgery-Related Inflammation and Mesothelioma Outcomes
A team of researchers at the University of Pennsylvania say they have come up with better way to measure the effects of surgery-related inflammation on subsequent mesothelioma therapies. Their results could help other scientists predict the effectiveness of new and existing adjuvant mesothelioma treatments. Combination Therapy for Mesothelioma Because malignant mesothelioma is so difficult to treat, most patients are treated with a combination of different therapies. While not all patients are candidates for surgery, a number of studies have suggested that mesothelioma patients who do have surgery as one of their treatments tend to live longer than those who only have other types of treatments. The challenge is that surgery itself can be so disruptive to the body that … Continue reading Surgery-Related Inflammation and Mesothelioma Outcomes
How Asbestos Turns Healthy Cells into Mesothelioma Tumors
Scientists are a step closer to understanding how malignant mesothelioma may take hold in the body thanks to new research from the University of Vermont. A team of pathologists, biologists, and geneticists have released a report suggesting that exosomes, tiny vesicles secreted by cells, undergo dangerous changes when the cells encounter asbestos fibers. According to the researchers, exosomes from asbestos-exposed cells can carry gene-altering cargo that may then go on to “infect” cells on the mesothelial membranes where mesothelioma tumors start. Exosomes and Mesothelioma Risk To test the theory that these exosomes may prompt changes that results in pleural mesothelioma, researchers focused on lung epithelial cells and macrophages (white blood cells). These are typically the first cells to come in … Continue reading How Asbestos Turns Healthy Cells into Mesothelioma Tumors
New Technology Could Change How Mesothelioma Treatment is Monitored
New technology could eventually make it easier, less painful, and less expensive to track the progress of patients undergoing treatment for malignant mesothelioma and other cancers. A research team led by University of Wisconsin-Madison pharmacy professor Seungpyo Hong has developed what they say is a more efficient method for capturing free-floating cancer cells in the blood. The developers say the system is far more effective than existing systems at capturing these hard-to-find circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and could be used to supplement other technologies for tracking cancer treatment. Mesothelioma Biopsy vs CTC Tracking Although mesothelioma therapies have advanced in recent years, there is still no cure for the asbestos-linked cancer. As scientists work to develop new kinds of treatments like … Continue reading New Technology Could Change How Mesothelioma Treatment is Monitored
Simple Blood Test Detects Mesothelioma Progression
Malignant mesothelioma patients may not need multiple CT scans to tell whether their cancer has progressed in the months after chemotherapy treatment. UK researchers say a simple blood test to check their levels of the protein mesothelin costs less, requires fewer hospital visits, and is 96 percent accurate in most mesothelioma patients. Measuring Mesothelioma Progression The study was conducted by scientists at the University of Bristol who recruited 41 patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma to participate for at least a year after the end of their treatment. The mesothelioma patients included in the study had received either chemotherapy or best supportive care. At the end of chemotherapy (or from baseline in the patients receiving best supportive care), patients had … Continue reading Simple Blood Test Detects Mesothelioma Progression
Protein May Help Predict Complications After Peritoneal Mesothelioma Surgery
Researchers at MD Anderson Cancer Center say they may have found a way to help predict which peritoneal mesothelioma patients are most likely to develop complications after cytoreductive surgery and intraperitoneal chemotherapy. Cytoreductive surgery to remove as much of a mesothelioma tumor as possible, followed by a rinse of heated chemotherapy drugs in the abdomen is known as CRS + HIPEC. It has become a standard treatment for people with the abdominal form of the asbestos cancer known as malignant peritoneal mesothelioma. In a new study, researchers analyzed cases of all patients who underwent CRS + HIPEC at MD Anderson between June of 2014 and February of 2016 to find commonalities among those who did not do well. Their findings … Continue reading Protein May Help Predict Complications After Peritoneal Mesothelioma Surgery
Immune System Changes Could Signal Mesothelioma Risk
The state of an asbestos-exposed person’s immune system might give doctors clues about how likely they are to develop malignant mesothelioma. It’s a fear for any person who has worked around asbestos – that one day they may develop the asbestos-linked cancer, mesothelioma. Pleural mesothelioma can take decades to develop, causes few symptoms at first, and is extremely hard to treat. Right now, there is no definitive way to screen for it. Even making a mesothelioma diagnosis is a challenge. Now, a team of occupational medicine experts in Japan and China have released an article in Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine detailing a list of biomarkers they believe may indicate asbestos-induced immune changes that could result in mesothelioma. How Asbestos … Continue reading Immune System Changes Could Signal Mesothelioma Risk
Study Highlights Challenge of Selecting Patients for Mesothelioma Immunotherapy
A new study is casting some doubt on the value of a protein called PD-L1 as a way to select mesothelioma patients for targeted immunotherapy. Several of the most promising new treatments for malignant mesothelioma, including pembrolizumab (Keytruda) and avelumab (Avastin), are designed to inhibit PD-L1, a protein cells used to evade detection by the immune system. PD-L1 inhibitors like Keytruda have become an important focus of mesothelioma research in the past two years. But a new Mayo Clinic study suggests that PD-L1 may not be the miracle target that scientists and mesothelioma patients have been hoping for. That is because PD-L1 levels can sometimes vary widely, depending on when and from where the tissue samples were collected. PD-L1 Expression … Continue reading Study Highlights Challenge of Selecting Patients for Mesothelioma Immunotherapy
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