Tag Archives: mesothelioma treatment

Surgery Remains “Cornerstone” of Mesothelioma Treatment

A major new study of more than 14,000 mesothelioma patients diagnosed between 1973 and 2009 finds that surgery appears to have a greater impact on survival than any other form of mesothelioma treatment. Researchers with Mount Sinai Medical Center, North Shore/Long Island Jewish Health System, and Hofstra School of Medicine in New York analyzed data from SEER (Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results), a large national database of cancer patients. Only patients with confirmed malignant pleural mesothelioma were included in the study. The researchers divided 14,228 mesothelioma cases by age, sex race, diagnosis year, stage, cancer-directed surgery, radiation and other factors to determine which ones appear to have the most influence on mesothelioma survival. When compared to having no treatment, cancer-directed … Continue reading Surgery Remains “Cornerstone” of Mesothelioma Treatment »

Orphan Drug Approval Could Mean New Mesothelioma Treatment Option

A drug designed to fight cancer by destroying the stem cells that give rise to new cancer cells has been granted orphan drug status for the treatment of malignant mesothelioma. The designation paves the way for mesothelioma patients, who often have few treatment options, to get access to VS-5584 earlier than it would otherwise be available. VS-5584 is a powerful inhibitor of a signaling pathway that regulates cancer progression and the survival of cancer stem cells. According to Verastem, the Boston-based maker of VS-5584, the drug has already received a similar designation for mesothelioma in Europe. “This is an important regulatory milestone for Verastem and… will facilitate our global development of VS-5584 to help improve the available treatment options for patients suffering … Continue reading Orphan Drug Approval Could Mean New Mesothelioma Treatment Option »

NIH Grant May Help Validate Light-Based Therapy for Mesothelioma

University of Pennsylvania researchers studying a promising mesothelioma treatment that kills cancer cells with light will get the opportunity to take their research to the next level thanks to a significant new grant. Penn’s Perelman School of Medicine has received $8 million from the National Cancer Institute to delve deeper into the effects of photodynamic therapy (PDT) in patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma. The team has been researching and using the treatment in patients for several years, but the grant will allow them to conduct a larger clinical trial to further validate their good results. “This trial represents a major step in understanding the combination of treatment modalities that will offer patients the best hope for survival and extended remission,” … Continue reading NIH Grant May Help Validate Light-Based Therapy for Mesothelioma »

New Mesothelioma Treatment Boosts Chemotherapy Response

An important new study from one of the country’s top mesothelioma research labs has found a way to significantly boost the impact of chemotherapy on mesothelioma patients who are not eligible for surgery. Dr. Raffit Hassan and his colleagues at the National Cancer Institute have been focusing their efforts on an immunotoxin – a potent toxin inked to an antibody – to selectively target mesothelioma cells. The immunotoxin, called SS1P, is designed to target a protein called mesothelin, which is overexpressed in mesothelioma cells. While previous studies have shown some promise in SS1P treatment by itself, especially when the immune system is suppressed, the newest study tests the value of SS1P in combination with the most popular mesothelioma chemotherapy drugs, … Continue reading New Mesothelioma Treatment Boosts Chemotherapy Response »

Human Trials Planned for Promising New Mesothelioma Drug

Researcher

The Australian Asbestos Diseases Research Institute says it is ready to begin human trials on what its lead researcher calls the first significant advance in mesothelioma treatment in a decade. More than three years in development, TargomiRs utilizes a unique ‘minicell’ delivery system to insert a synthetic form of missing genetic material into mesothelioma cells. Like a number of other types of cancer, mesothelioma cells are missing a family of microRNAs critical to regulating the cellular life cycle. TargomiRs restores these microRNAs. In mice with human-derived mesothelioma, TargomiRs produced a “remarkable inhibition of tumour growth”, according to the Asbestos Diseases Research Institute. “The last significant development in the treatment of mesothelioma occurred ten years ago,” ADRI director Nico van Zandwijk … Continue reading Human Trials Planned for Promising New Mesothelioma Drug »

Monoclonal Antibody a ‘Novel Treatment’ for Mesothelioma?

A drug currently used to treat colorectal cancer and some types of head and neck cancer may also offer a new way to combat mesothelioma. Malignant pleural mesothelioma is an asbestos-linked cancer that spreads across the mesothelial tissue surrounding the lungs. The disease is highly resistant to most conventional therapies and is often fatal within a year of diagnosis.  As the number of mesothelioma cases continues to increase in many developing counties, scientists around the world are studying mesothelioma cells for clues that could help them develop more effective treatments. One clue is the overexpression of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). EGFR is overexpressed by mesothelioma cells and several other types of cancer cells. The monoclonal antibody cetuximab, which is derived … Continue reading Monoclonal Antibody a ‘Novel Treatment’ for Mesothelioma? »

Perifosine May Offer New Mesothelioma Treatment

The makers of the anti-cancer drug perifosine say new research suggests the drug may offer a new way to fight malignant mesothelioma. The research article entitled “Perifosine as a Potential Novel Anti-Cancer Agent Inhibits EGFR/MET-AKT Axis in Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma” was recently published in the peer-reviewed online medical journal Plos One. The announcement has been picked up by other news outlets because of the rarity of new treatments for mesothelioma, the asbestos-linked cancer that is diagnosed in about 2,500 Americans every year. In the new study, perifosine was tested on human mesothelial cells and a variety of mesothelioma cell lines to demonstrate its effectiveness alone or in combination with other mesothelioma treatments. When given at a high enough dose, perifosine interfered … Continue reading Perifosine May Offer New Mesothelioma Treatment »

Rare Form of Mesothelioma Appears after Multimodal Treatment

Advanced mesothelioma treatment approaches like multimodal therapy may not only prolong survival in some patients; they may also cause fundamental changes in the way the disease presents itself. Pleural mesothelioma is a malignancy of the thin lining that encases the lungs. It is caused by exposure to asbestos. Typically, the prognosis is poor. But a multinational study in the Journal of Thoracic Oncology finds that more efficient chemotherapy protocols and aggressive management strategies are resulting in more longer-living patients. The researchers single out the powerful trimodal combination of induction chemotherapy, extrapleural pneumonectomy surgery, and adjuvant high-dose hemithoracic radiation for its impact on survival. Although this therapy combination may hold mesothelioma at bay in some cases, it usually returns eventually. The … Continue reading Rare Form of Mesothelioma Appears after Multimodal Treatment »

Multi-Modality Mesothelioma Treatment Well Tolerated

The combination of pleurectomy/decortication, hyperthermic pleural lavage and adjuvant chemotherapy is an effective alternative to more traditional mesothelioma treatment combinations. So say the London scientists who tested the method on 36 mesothelioma patients over a five-and-a-half year period. The mesothelioma patients were all treated at a London hospital between October 2004 and May 2010. Each patient first underwent pleurectomy/decortication, a surgical method for removing as many malignant mesothelioma tumor cells as possible. The method is considered by many to be a safer alternative to the more extensive surgery called extrapleural pneumonectomy, which involves removing a lung and part of the diaphragm. Before their surgical wounds were closed, each patient’s chest cavity was rinsed with a warmed povidone-iodine solution, designed to … Continue reading Multi-Modality Mesothelioma Treatment Well Tolerated »

Genes May be Targets for Mesothelioma Treatment

The same genes that can help predict which mesothelioma patients will do well after surgery, might also be good targets for gene therapy to combat the disease. That’s the conclusion of one of the nation’s top mesothelioma experts, Dr. David Sugarbaker, and his colleagues at Brigham & Women’s Hospital in Boston. After publishing research showing that certain genes can affect patients’ post-surgical prognosis, the team looked further into the genes themselves and how they relate to mesothelioma. Mesothelioma is highly resistant to standard treatments. Gene therapy, which harnesses and uses the body’s own nature defense system, is being studied as a promising alternative. Starting with lung tissue from both healthy patients and those with malignant pleural mesothelioma, the researchers used … Continue reading Genes May be Targets for Mesothelioma Treatment »