Cracking the Code: Revolutionizing Mesothelioma Staging
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Cracking the Code: Revolutionizing Mesothelioma Staging

ByHolly Zink

A group of researchers from the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) teamed up to help us understand this disease better. The IASLC developed a mesothelioma database to improve disease staging. Staging is important because it helps doctors plan the best treatment The Power of Data and International Collaboration Malignant pleural mesothelioma is a complex disease. Mesothelioma diagnosis and accurate staging are often difficult to pin down. And the diagnosis is further complicated by different disease subtypes. When doctors talk about mesothelioma, they often mention staging. Doctors use staging to give an idea of how big the cancer is and if it has spread to other parts. They might use numbers like 1, 2, 3, or 4 to…

Access to Multi-Modality Mesothelioma Treatment Limited for Uninsured & Rural Residents
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Access to Multi-Modality Mesothelioma Treatment Limited for Uninsured & Rural Residents

ByAlex Strauss

A new study shows a person’s insurance status and where they live often impact their access to multi-modality mesothelioma treatment. This can have an impact on their survival.  Researchers at the University of Miami Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center conducted the new study. They shared their findings at the recent virtual world conference of the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer.  The study found that access to multi-modality mesothelioma treatment was more common in patients with private insurance or Medicare. It was also more common among those who lived closer to larger medical centers.  People who lived further out or who did not have insurance often did not receive the treatments that offer the best odds of mesothelioma survival….

Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Safe Both Before and After Mesothelioma Surgery
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Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Safe Both Before and After Mesothelioma Surgery

ByAlex Strauss

A report presented to an international gathering of lung cancer doctors shows an immune checkpoint inhibitor can make pre-surgery chemotherapy more effective for pleural mesothelioma patients.  The report was presented at the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer 2021 World Conference on Lung Cancer. The week-long virtual conference ended yesterday.  Dr. Anne Tsao of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center presented her study results. They show that mesothelioma patients may benefit from an immune checkpoint inhibitor as part of neoadjuvant chemotherapy. The same drug may also be helpful as a maintenance therapy after surgery. How Does an Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Work? Immune checkpoint inhibitors are a form of immunotherapy. Immunotherapy treatments work by manipulating the immune…

Opdivo as Second-Line Treatment Option for Mesothelioma: Promising New Data

Opdivo as Second-Line Treatment Option for Mesothelioma: Promising New Data

ByAlex Strauss

A new study suggests that the cancer drug Opdivo could be an effective second-line treatment option for people with relapsed mesothelioma. Right now, people whose mesothelioma comes back after treatment do not have an approved second-line treatment option.  The news on Opdivo comes from the first ever placebo-controlled phase 3 trial of patients with relapsed mesothelioma. It shows that the drug significantly improved overall survival for these patients. It also increased the time it took for patients’ cancer to get worse. Details of the CONFIRM Trial The trial of this proposed second-line treatment option for mesothelioma was called CONFIRM. It involved 332 mesothelioma patients from 24 UK cancer centers. The patients already had at least one treatment. Two thirds of…

First-Line Keytruda Treatment May Support Longer Mesothelioma Survival
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First-Line Keytruda Treatment May Support Longer Mesothelioma Survival

ByAlex Strauss

New data suggests first-line Keytruda treatment helps lung cancer patients more than chemotherapy – even if chemotherapy patients add Keytruda later. The news is likely to have implications for people with pleural mesothelioma, too. German researchers presented the data earlier this week at the World Lung Cancer Conference in Barcelona.  The presentation was based on three years of the KEYNOTE-024 trial. The trial focused on lung cancer. But Keytruda is also an up-and-coming drug for malignant pleural mesothelioma. Pleural mesothelioma is a lung-related cancer similar to non-small cell lung cancer.  Blocking PD-L1 with First-Line Keytruda Treatment Keytruda is the brand name for pembrolizumab. It is an immune checkpoint inhibitor that blocks a protein called PD-L1. To be eligible for first-line…

Mesothelioma Staging Guidelines May Need Revisions
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Mesothelioma Staging Guidelines May Need Revisions

ByAlex Strauss

The International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) says the current strategy for staging malignant pleural mesothelioma may need to be modified. According to an international team of IASLC member researchers, the current system, which was established by the International Mesothelioma Interest Group (IMIG) and has been widely used, has a number of flaws. First, in part because it was based on a retrospective analysis of a small group of mesothelioma surgical patients, it has limited value in clinical staging.  In addition, the IMIG mesothelioma staging guidelines use descriptors for lymph node involvement which the IASLC researchers say may not be relevant to mesothelioma. Because of these shortcomings, the IASLC has announced that it will work with the IMIG to…