Expanding Treatment Horizons: CIRT’s Potential for Mesothelioma Patients
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Expanding Treatment Horizons: CIRT’s Potential for Mesothelioma Patients

ByHolly Zink

When it comes to treating early-stage cancer, surgery is often the recommended approach. But did you know that some patients choose a different option – radiotherapy? In recent years, a special type of radiotherapy called Carbon-ion radiotherapy (CIRT) has become popular, and a study from Japan has shown how it can help people with early-stage lung cancer. CIRT also has treatment applications in mesothelioma. CIRT: A Different Kind of Treatment Carbon-ion radiotherapy, or CIRT, is a unique way to treat cancer using special particles called carbon ions instead of X-rays. This treatment has several advantages, making it an attractive choice for people who don’t want surgery. CIRT is known for its ability to control cancer locally while causing fewer severe…

A Japanese Asbestos-Cement Plant and Mesothelioma

A Japanese Asbestos-Cement Plant and Mesothelioma

ByHolly Zink

Living near a facility that uses asbestos can increase your chances of getting mesothelioma. This is the finding of a study published in Cancer Science by researchers from Japan. The researchers looked at people who lived near a large-scale asbestos-cement plant in Amagasaki, Japan. History of Asbestos Use Asbestos is a naturally occurring material that can be found throughout the world. It is often used in manufacturing and construction because it is hard to set on fire and nearly impossible to corrode. It is also inexpensive to use because it does not have to be synthesized in a factory. Asbestos is also toxic and causes cancer in humans who breathe it in. It can cause mesothelioma, which is a cancer…

A New Prognostic Index for Mesothelioma?
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A New Prognostic Index for Mesothelioma?

ByAlex Strauss

Researchers in Japan have come up with what they say is the most up-to-date way to accurately predict outcomes in newly-diagnosed malignant pleural mesothelioma patients. Many factors can affect mesothelioma prognosis. Some of them are related to the patient’s overall health and disease stage or type while others have to do with the type of therapy the patient undergoes. Scientists at Kyoto University, Hyogo College of Medicine, and Fukushima Medical University analyzed the outcomes of 283 mesothelioma patients between 2007 and 2013 to determine which factors were most likely to impact their outcomes and to what degree. “Existing prognostic indices for malignant pleural mesothelioma do not incorporate the recent advances in oncology care,” notes study author Yoshiko Kataoka with Kyoto…

Mesothelioma Still on the Rise in Japan
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Mesothelioma Still on the Rise in Japan

ByAlex Strauss

While the rate of mesothelioma continues to slowly decline in the U.S., the virulent asbestos-linked cancer is still on the rise in Japan. A new Japanese study on future health trends projects that the incidence of mesothelioma won’t peak in Japan until 2027.  In the meantime, tens of thousands of Japanese workers are expected to die of mesothelioma.  Based on considerations such as the number of workers in industrial jobs and the likelihood of asbestos exposure, the study projects the mesothelioma death toll to reach 66,327 people ages 50 to 89 between 2003 and 2050. Although a 2009 study of Japanese mesothelioma risk predicted a maximum of just 37,000 deaths by 2070, the new study’s authors say their prediction method is likely…