First-Line Chemotherapy for Peritoneal Mesothelioma
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First-Line Chemotherapy for Peritoneal Mesothelioma

ByAlex Strauss

The same drugs doctors use to treat pleural mesothelioma can provide effective chemotherapy for peritoneal mesothelioma, too. Japanese researchers reviewed the cases of 29 peritoneal mesothelioma patients. These patients had first-line treatment with cisplatin and pemetrexed between 2001 and 2016. The results suggest these drugs are safe and potent chemotherapy for peritoneal mesothelioma. The finding may help doctors and patients make better treatment decisions. Treating Malignant Mesothelioma Malignant mesothelioma is a membrane cancer. It usually occurs in one of two places. About 80 percent of mesothelioma tumors arise on the membrane that surrounds the lungs (the pleura). This is called pleural mesothelioma.  About 20 percent of the 2,500 cases of mesothelioma diagnosed in the US each year are peritoneal. Peritoneal…

PIPAC May Make More Patients Candidates for Mesothelioma Surgery
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PIPAC May Make More Patients Candidates for Mesothelioma Surgery

ByAlex Strauss

Researchers in France have come up with a way to turn some people with inoperable peritoneal mesothelioma into good candidates for mesothelioma surgery.  They are using a new technique to spray chemotherapy drugs directly onto peritoneal tumors in order to shrink them.  In some cases, the technique shrunk mesothelioma tumors enough that they could be surgically removed with the CRS/HIPEC procedure.  What Makes a Good Candidate for Mesothelioma Surgery A number of factors influence whether patients are good candidates for mesothelioma surgery. Patients have to be in otherwise reasonably good health so that their body can handle the surgery. It is also critical that their mesothelioma not be so widespread in their abdomen that it would be impossible for surgeons…

Mesothelioma Survival Rates Have Remained Flat for Decades
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Mesothelioma Survival Rates Have Remained Flat for Decades

ByAlex Strauss

Mesothelioma survival rates have stayed steady for decades, even though treatments are improving. According to more than 25 years worth of data from the National Mesothelioma Virtual Bank, people with malignant mesothelioma live a median of 15 months. That number has changed little since 1990. Charting Mesothelioma Patients Over Time Researchers from several major US cancer centers compiled the new report. The goal was to chart mesothelioma survival rates over time and identify factors that impact them. The group evaluated mesothelioma survival rates from 888 cases of pleural and peritoneal mesothelioma in the NMVB. The NMVB houses information on more than 1400 mesothelioma cases diagnosed between 1990 and 2017. Overall mesothelioma survival rates stayed right around 15 months. But there…

Mesothelioma Chemotherapy with Avastin Helps Pain, Neuropathy
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Mesothelioma Chemotherapy with Avastin Helps Pain, Neuropathy

ByAlex Strauss

New evidence suggests that supplementing standard mesothelioma chemotherapy with Avastin (bevacizumab) may lead to less pain. It may also reduce the risk of another mesothelioma complication called peripheral neuropathy. That word comes from a newly-published study involving several French hospitals. The study is a follow-up to the French-led MAPS study from 2016. The MAPS study showed that performing mesothelioma chemotherapy with Avastin – in addition to the standard chemotherapy drugs – improved mesothelioma survival by 23 percent. Now it looks like the three-drug combination can also help mesothelioma patients live longer with fewer side effects. Mesothelioma Complications and Side Effects Avastin is a VEGF inhibitor. It works by preventing the formation of blood vessels that feed a growing tumor. The…

Gel-Based Mesothelioma Treatment: A Novel Approach to Pleural Mesothelioma
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Gel-Based Mesothelioma Treatment: A Novel Approach to Pleural Mesothelioma

ByAlex Strauss

Swiss scientists are developing a novel gel-based mesothelioma treatment for people with pleural disease. Early studies suggest it may be a safer way to deliver cancer-fighting drugs with fewer side effects. The gel-based mesothelioma treatment combines the chemotherapy drug cisplatin with a natural “glue” called fibrin. When the gel is applied during surgery, it can keep fighting tumors for months. Why Develop a Gel-Based Treatment? Cisplatin is a platinum-based drug. Together with pemetrexed (Alimta), it is one of the most common chemotherapy drugs for mesothelioma. In the past decade, doctors came up with a way to increase the effectiveness of cisplatin in people with peritoneal mesothelioma. These patients get chemotherapy the usual way. But they also get a rinse of…

Treating Advanced Peritoneal Mesothelioma with Spray-On Oxaliplatin
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Treating Advanced Peritoneal Mesothelioma with Spray-On Oxaliplatin

ByAlex Strauss

European doctors have tested a new spray-on cancer drug that could be another treatment option for people with advanced peritoneal mesothelioma. The drug is oxaliplatin. It is sold under the brand name Eloxatin. It is normally given by injection into a vein. But that can cause serious side effects, including stomach pain. A new study published in the European Journal of Surgical Oncology suggests there may be a more effective way to get the benefits of oxaliplatin. Researchers found that using it as a spray for advanced peritoneal mesothelioma extended survival with fewer side effects. PIPAC for Advanced Peritoneal Mesothelioma As Surviving Mesothelioma first reported last spring, pressurized intraperitoneal aerosol chemotherapy (PIPAC) is a new way to deliver cancer medicines….

Tumor Treating Fields Win FDA Approval for Mesothelioma Treatment
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Tumor Treating Fields Win FDA Approval for Mesothelioma Treatment

ByAlex Strauss

The FDA has approved an electricity-based mesothelioma treatment known as Tumor Treating Fields (NovoTTF-100L). The treatment is approved for use along with standard mesothelioma chemotherapy. It is the first new treatment for pleural mesothelioma since the approval of Alimta (pemetrexed) in 2004. Approval of NovoTTF-100L was based on the promising results of the STELLAR phase 2 mesothelioma clinical trial. Those results, released in April, were even better than expected. Electricity is the Basis of Tumor Treating Fields The Tumor Treating Fields approach was created by Jersey-based Novocure. It first found success in the treatment of the deadly brain cancer glioblastoma. The technology uses electrical fields to destabilize critical proteins responsible for cell division. When these proteins cannot do their job,…

Ofev Shelved as a Treatment for Pleural Mesothelioma
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Ofev Shelved as a Treatment for Pleural Mesothelioma

ByAlex Strauss

It is official – the VEGF inhibitor Ofev is out of the running as a treatment for pleural mesothelioma. Hopes had been high for this drug after initial results showed a survival advantage. For the last two years, Ofev (nintedanib) was the subject of a large, international clinical trial. But now the leaders of that trial have published their Phase III trial results in The Lancet: Respiratory Medicine. They show that Ofev did not extend survival and is not an effective treatment for pleural mesothelioma. Why Hopes Were High for Ofev Ofev is an oral medication that stops cancer cells from producing a protein called VEGF. VEGF promotes the growth of blood vessels that help mesothelioma tumors grow. VEGF may…

Chemoimmunotherapy Called “Next Frontier” for Mesothelioma Cancer
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Chemoimmunotherapy Called “Next Frontier” for Mesothelioma Cancer

ByAlex Strauss

Mesothelioma researchers in Australia are calling the combination of chemotherapy and immunotherapy the “next frontier” in the treatment of mesothelioma cancer. In a study published in the journal Expert Opinions in Biological Therapy, the researchers reviewed past clinical trials on mesothelioma immunotherapy. They focused on studies published between 2016 and 2018. Their goal was to get a clearer picture of just how effective these drugs are and how they might be used in combination with other treatments. Chemotherapy for Mesothelioma Cancer Currently, immunotherapy is not the primary treatment for mesothelioma cancer. Instead, most patients have chemotherapy, which is considered the gold standard treatment. For the past 15 years, Alimta has been the main chemotherapy drug for people with malignant mesothelioma….

Lower-Volume Centers Less Likely to Follow Mesothelioma Treatment Guidelines
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Lower-Volume Centers Less Likely to Follow Mesothelioma Treatment Guidelines

ByAlex Strauss

Mesothelioma patients need to beware of low-volume centers that are less likely to follow mesothelioma treatment guidelines. That is the message from a new study based on data from the National Cancer Institute. The study was run by doctors at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. It shows that treatment centers that do not see a lot of mesothelioma cases are less likely to follow the life-saving mesothelioma treatment guidelines. As a result, patients treated in these lower-volume facilities tend to have shorter mesothelioma survival. What are the Mesothelioma Treatment Guidelines? Malignant pleural mesothelioma is a cancer that occurs on the membrane that surrounds the lungs. It is extremely rare and difficult to treat. Many hospitals and doctors never see…