Analysis of Three Top Mesothelioma Biomarkers
|

Analysis of Three Top Mesothelioma Biomarkers

ByAlex Strauss

New research confirms that some mesothelioma biomarkers are much more effective than others for detecting asbestos cancer. The news comes from a study conducted at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York. Researchers ran an analysis of more than 50 studies on three popular mesothelioma biomarkers. They concluded that two of them make good mesothelioma screening tools but one of them does not.   The Challenge of Early Mesothelioma Diagnosis Mesothelioma is a highly aggressive cancer caused by exposure to asbestos. As with most cancers, the odds of surviving mesothelioma are higher if it is caught early. But mesothelioma does not cause many symptoms in the early stages. This can make it challenging to diagnose. Even…

Mesothelioma Management: Different Biomarkers Serve Different Functions
| | | | |

Mesothelioma Management: Different Biomarkers Serve Different Functions

ByAlex Strauss

Australian researchers have attempted to settle the debate about the value of the newly proposed mesothelioma biomarker fibulin-3 compared with the gold standard biomarker mesothelin.  According to their new report in the journal Thorax, mesothelin is still the best marker for diagnosing mesothelioma but fibulin-3 is better at predicting mesothelioma outcomes. The multi-center study included 153 patients – 82 with pleural mesothelioma, 36 with other types of malignancies causing pleural effusions (excess lung fluid), and 35 with benign effusions. For comparison, the team also measured biomarker levels in the blood plasma of 49 people with non-mesothelioma asbestos-related diseases. Researchers measured mesothelin and fibulin-3 levels in both pleural effusions and blood plasma and determined that mesothelin provides the best diagnostic accuracy,…