Mesothelioma Survival Impacted by Lack of Surgery
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Mesothelioma Survival Impacted by Lack of Surgery

ByAlex Strauss

A team of surgical oncologists say failure to treat peritoneal mesothelioma with surgery is costing too many patients their lives. Researchers from the Medical College of Wisconsin studied survival statistics for more than 1,500 patients with malignant peritoneal mesothelioma, a form of mesothelioma that occurs in the abdomen. They concluded that many more of them could survive longer if they were treated with surgery. Using the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) database, the research team identified 1,591 patients diagnosed with peritoneal mesothelioma between 1973 and 2010. The median age of the studied patients was 74 years and most had metastatic disease, meaning that their mesothelioma had spread beyond the peritoneal membrane that lines the abdomen. Of those 1,591 peritoneal…

Needle Biopsy an Effective Alternative for Some Mesothelioma Patients
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Needle Biopsy an Effective Alternative for Some Mesothelioma Patients

ByAlex Strauss

Mesothelioma patients who are not good candidates for thoracoscopy can still get a definitive diagnosis with a procedure called cutting-needle pleural biopsy. A team of Oxford-based scientists compared the two procedures to determine whether ultrasound-guided cutting needle biopsy could produce enough tissue to diagnose mesothelioma. Mesothelioma, an asbestos-linked malignancy that starts on the membrane around the lungs, can be difficult to diagnose. At the same time, because so many patients do not develop symptoms until the disease is in its later stages, rapid and accurate diagnosis is critical. Although patients suspected of having mesothelioma may undergo imaging tests, blood tests for tell-tale biomarkers, and pleural fluid analysis, tissue biopsy and examination of the cells remains the only way to obtain…

Tracking Mesothelioma with FDG-PET
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Tracking Mesothelioma with FDG-PET

ByAlex Strauss

The imaging method called positron emission tomography (PET) using the radioactive tracer molecule 18F-FDG is a valuable way to both diagnose and track the progression of malignant peritoneal mesothelioma. Nuclear medicine researchers at a Hospital in Barcelona, Spain reviewed the diagnostic and treatment records of 60 people with malignant peritoneal mesothelioma, a form of mesothelioma that spreads on the membrane lining the walls of the abdomen. The study subjects included 34 women and 26 men with a mean age of 53. All the patients in the study had had multiple 18-F-FDG-PET scans to diagnose or track their cancer. Eleven of the studied patients had an FDG-PET scan prior to receiving treatment. In all cases, the scans showed characteristic mesothelioma disease…

Virtual Community Can Ease Mesothelioma Stress
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Virtual Community Can Ease Mesothelioma Stress

ByAlex Strauss

Mesothelioma patients and their families can reduce their stress and feel more supported by getting involved in an online community. That is the conclusion reached by researchers at in the Psychology Department at Southern Cross University in New South Wales, Australia. Writing in the Journal of Psychosocial Oncology, lecturer Desiree Kozlowski and her colleagues reported on the first 30 days of a peer-to-peer virtual community of people with asbestos-related illnesses like mesothelioma. In the introduction to their report, the team observes that people with mesothelioma, a rare but aggressive lung-related cancer, often feel socially isolated and highly stressed by their life-limiting symptoms. In addition to coping with the challenges of mesothelioma diagnosis and treatment, patients who were negligently exposed to…

Protein Biomarkers in Mesothelioma Diagnosis, Prognosis and Treatment
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Protein Biomarkers in Mesothelioma Diagnosis, Prognosis and Treatment

ByAlex Strauss

Three separate teams of international researchers have confirmed that proteins found in the blood can reveal some vital information for the diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of pleural mesothelioma. These new studies on mesothelioma biomarkers indicate that all three of the studied proteins have value, but for different reasons. The most recent study comes from researchers in the Czech Republic who found that serum mesothelin, a protein overexpressed in several types of cancer, is valuable to measure the severity of mesothelioma in people who have already been diagnosed, but is unlikely to help doctors find the disease earlier. Doctors in the Department of Respiratory Medicine in Palacky University Olomouc followed 239 asbestos-exposed workers for nearly 20 years. They found that mesothelin…

Using Genes to Predict Mesothelioma Chemotherapy Response
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Using Genes to Predict Mesothelioma Chemotherapy Response

ByAlex Strauss

British genetic researchers say a mesothelioma patient’s genes can influence their response to chemotherapy and the knowledge may open the door for more individualized and successful mesothelioma treatments. The team from Guy’s Hospital and St. Thomas’ Hospital in London, focused on polymorphisms, genetic variations that can impact patients’ tolerance to Alimta- (pemetrexed) based chemotherapy. The combination of Alimta and a platinum derivative like cisplatin is currently the most popular first-line treatment for pleural mesothelioma. Using a genetic test called the Illumina Human Exome v 1.1 BeadChip, the researchers compared 28 polymorphisms on 11 key genes with clinical outcomes in patients with either non-small cell lung cancer or mesothelioma. All of the 136 study subjects were receiving combination chemotherapy with Alimta…

Biomarker May Predict Chemotherapy Response in Mesothelioma
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Biomarker May Predict Chemotherapy Response in Mesothelioma

ByAlex Strauss

Cancer researchers in Japan say they may have found a way to help predict which mesothelioma patients are most likely to respond well to treatment with Alimta. Alimta (pemetrexed) was FDA approved in 2004 for the treatment of mesothelioma, a virulent form of lung cancer linked to asbestos exposure. Alimta is often administered along with the platinum-based drug cisplatin, although this first-line mesothelioma treatment combination has been shown to have only limited success. Part of the problem is that it is difficult to predict which mesothelioma patients will respond to which types of therapies. Mesothelioma treatment, therefore, often involves a process of trial and error to find the therapy that works best. Unfortunately, this approach can cost patients valuable time…

Alcoholism Drug Suppresses Mesothelioma Tumors in Mice
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Alcoholism Drug Suppresses Mesothelioma Tumors in Mice

ByAlex Strauss

A drug approved by the FDA for the treatment of alcoholism appears to have the potential to fight malignant pleural mesothelioma, an aggressive form of lung cancer that is often unresponsive to conventional therapies. Disulfiram (sold under the brand name Antabuse) blocks the processing of alcohol in the body by inhibiting acetaldehyde dehydrogenase. Some studies have suggested that the drug’s ability to bind to copper, a mineral often elevated in the blood serum of cancer patients, may also give it anti-tumor properties and the ability to make cancer cells more susceptible to chemotherapy. In the new mesothelioma study, a team led by cancer researchers at Detroit’s Wayne State University School of Medicine administered copper complexed disulfiram (DSF-Cu) to mice with…

Low-Dose Gemzar: Cost Effective Alternative for Mesothelioma?
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Low-Dose Gemzar: Cost Effective Alternative for Mesothelioma?

ByAlex Strauss

A new study of an alternative form of chemotherapy for mesothelioma finds that it may be a safe, effective, and less expensive treatment option, especially for low-income patients. Gemzar (gemcitabine) is a nucleoside analog that has been found to arrest tumor growth and trigger apoptosis (cell death)in several types of cancer, including breast, bladder, pancreatic and non-small cell lung cancer. Now, researchers working on a phase II trial of Gemzar for advanced malignant pleural mesothelioma say a continuous low-level infusion of the drug may be a viable treatment option. Dr. Oscar Arrieta and colleagues at the National Cancer Institute of Mexico evaluated the outcomes of 39 patients with advanced mesothelioma treated with low-dose infusions of Gemzar and cisplatin instead of…

Catheter Metastasis Manageable for Mesothelioma Patients

Catheter Metastasis Manageable for Mesothelioma Patients

ByAlex Strauss

The largest study yet of mesothelioma patients with metastatic disease along the path of their lung catheters has some reassuring news for patients. Australian researchers find that the problem is usually treatable. Many later-stage mesothelioma patients have indwelling pleural catheters put in place to help them deal with pleural effusions, a buildup of fluid that is a common symptom of the cancer. Untreated pleural effusions in mesothelioma can cause severe chest pain, shortness of breath, coughing and other life-limiting problems. For mesothelioma patients who are not candidates for pleurodesis, studies have shown that the installation of a catheter to drain off the lung fluid can create other problems.The most serious problem associated with indwelling pleural catheters (IPCs) is the risk…