The Role of Surgery in Pleural Mesothelioma
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The Role of Surgery in Pleural Mesothelioma

ByHolly Zink

Pleural Mesothelioma is a rare and aggressive cancer caused by asbestos exposure. The outlook for this disease is often poor, with a typical survival time of 9 to 20 months after treatment. The overall 5-year survival rate is around 5%. However, new treatments that include surgery are helping improve these numbers. A new article from Cancers explains how surgery helps in diagnosing, staging, and treating pleural mesothelioma. Importance of Surgery in Diagnosis and Staging Surgery is very important for diagnosing and staging pleural mesothelioma accurately. During surgery, doctors can take tissue samples to confirm the disease and identify its type. Correct staging, which means figuring out how far the disease has spread, is crucial for planning the right treatment.  Major…

New Study: PD Surgery and HITHOC for Pleural Mesothelioma
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New Study: PD Surgery and HITHOC for Pleural Mesothelioma

ByAlex Strauss

German doctors say a combination of extended PD surgery and HITHOC has produced some ‘remarkable’ results for patients with pleural mesothelioma.  Extended PD (pleurectomy with decortication) is a lung-sparing surgical procedure for people with cancer on the pleural membrane around the lungs. HITHOC is a method for infusing the area with heated chemotherapy drugs without sending those drugs through the whole body.  Together, extended PD surgery and HITHOC produced median progression-free survival of more than a year and a half for mesothelioma patients in a new German study. Their experience is the focus of a new article in the journal Respiration.  Removing and Killing Cancer Cells: The One-Two Punch Malignant pleural mesothelioma is a rare cancer that starts on the…

New Test May Help Doctors Choose the Best Mesothelioma Surgery
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New Test May Help Doctors Choose the Best Mesothelioma Surgery

ByAlex Strauss

A new predictive model may make it easier for cancer doctors to choose the best mesothelioma surgery for each pleural mesothelioma patient.  There are two major surgical approaches for pleural mesothelioma. One involves removal of a lung and the other does not.  Right now, the choice about which surgery to have is based on patient demographics, symptoms, and lab values. Which surgery is most common at the institution may also play a role. Many surgeons have strong opinions about which is the best mesothelioma surgery.   But Harvard researchers say the new predictive model they tested is a better way to stratify mesothelioma patients. Their study suggests that this approach may lead to better treatment outcomes and more accurate clinical trials. …

Non-Incisional Pleurectomy/Decortication for Mesothelioma
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Non-Incisional Pleurectomy/Decortication for Mesothelioma

ByAlex Strauss

Non-incisional pleurectomy/decortication could be the wave of the future for malignant mesothelioma treatment.  Environmental health experts in Japan say it is possible to remove the diseased pleural lining in a person with mesothelioma without making incisions that could spread their cancer.  The procedure is called non-incisional pleurectomy/decortication. It is a new way to perform mesothelioma surgery that may be safer, faster, and more effective.  Japanese researchers recently published a report on their experience with the technique. The report appears in the newest issue of General Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery. Surgical Treatment of Pleural Mesothelioma Pleural mesothelioma is the most common form of asbestos cancer. It occurs on the pleura, a thin membrane surrounding the lungs. From there, pleural mesothelioma can…

Minimally Invasive Surgery for Mesothelioma is “Viable Alternative” to Standard Approaches
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Minimally Invasive Surgery for Mesothelioma is “Viable Alternative” to Standard Approaches

ByAlex Strauss

A new study from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York suggests that minimally invasive surgery for mesothelioma is a “viable alternative” to open-chest procedures.  Both of the two main surgical procedures for pleural mesothelioma are usually done through a large incision in the chest. Both procedures also carry a high risk of post-surgical complications.  But the New York researchers found that minimally invasive surgery for mesothelioma may produce fewer serious problems in the short-term. It may also give mesothelioma patients a better quality of life after surgery. Surgical Treatment of Pleural Mesothelioma Pleural mesothelioma tumors occur on tissue that surrounds the lungs. These tumors tend to spread out across the tissue in irregular shapes. Their…

Complications After PD Surgery for Mesothelioma
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Complications After PD Surgery for Mesothelioma

ByAlex Strauss

Durable air leak is one of the most common complications after PD surgery for pleural mesothelioma, according to the authors of a new study. People with overall better health are less likely than others to experience the problem.  Air leaks happen when inhaled air does not stay in the alveoli in the lungs. Instead, it leaks into the area around the lungs. This can cause breathing problems and put pressure on the heart. Too much leaked air can even collapse a lung. A new Japanese study found that more than half of mesothelioma patients analyzed experienced serious complications after PD surgery. One in three patients suffered from air leak for more than ten days.  Pleurectomy/Decortication for Mesothelioma Pleural mesothelioma is…

Multimodal Mesothelioma Treatment Doubles Survival in Mexican Study
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Multimodal Mesothelioma Treatment Doubles Survival in Mexican Study

ByAlex Strauss

Researchers at Mexico’s National Cancer Institute say multimodal mesothelioma treatment with chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation can slow tumor growth and improve survival. Their new study of patients with advanced pleural mesothelioma produced a median survival of nearly two years. That is almost twice as long as average for pleural mesothelioma.  The researchers say the key is a multimodal mesothelioma treatment approach that attacks tumors from three different angles. Chemotherapy Alone is Rarely Enough Chemotherapy is still the main treatment for most patients with pleural mesothelioma. The FDA approved pemetrexed (Alimta) in 2004. Until the recent approval of a combination of Opdivo and Yervoy, Alimta was the only drug for mesothelioma. It is still the main component in mesothelioma chemotherapy. But…

Lung-Sparing Surgery for Mesothelioma Superior to EPP, Study Says
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Lung-Sparing Surgery for Mesothelioma Superior to EPP, Study Says

ByAlex Strauss

A team of Japanese researchers have added their voices to the ongoing debate over lung-sparing surgery for mesothelioma. The researchers analyzed multiple studies on the different kinds of surgery for mesothelioma. The studies included more than 2,600 mesothelioma patients.  After a careful review of the data, the Japanese team concluded that lung-sparing surgery for mesothelioma is almost always better than removing a lung. Mesothelioma patients who had this type of surgery had much fewer complications. They lived just as long as those who had more radical mesothelioma surgery.  Radical and Conservative Mesothelioma Surgery Malignant mesothelioma is a membrane cancer caused by asbestos exposure. It usually occurs in the membrane around the lungs. About 20 percent of cases occur on the…