Radical Surgery for Peritoneal Mesothelioma Boosts Survival
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Radical Surgery for Peritoneal Mesothelioma Boosts Survival

ByAlex Strauss

Patients who have radical surgery for peritoneal mesothelioma live longer than those who have non-surgical treatments.  That is the conclusion of a team of Virginia researchers. The study is based on peritoneal mesothelioma cases in the National Cancer Database. It spans more than a decade and includes over 2,000 patients.  Not everyone is a candidate for radical surgery for peritoneal mesothelioma. But the research shows that those who have surgery live an average of five times longer than those who do not.  Surgical Treatment of Peritoneal Mesothelioma Peritoneal mesothelioma is sometimes called diffuse malignant peritoneal mesothelioma. It is an aggressive cancer in the abdomen. It grows on the membrane around organs. Because mesothelioma tumors lie so close to these organs,…

Mesothelioma Recurrence After PD Surgery
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Mesothelioma Recurrence After PD Surgery

ByAlex Strauss

A new study finds that mesothelioma recurrence after PD surgery is common but most patients still live for more than a year afterwards. More than a third were still alive three years after recurrence. The study included 90 Japanese patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma.  Those who lived for at least a year without mesothelioma recurrence after PD surgery had the best chance of longer term survival. A good performance status and undergoing additional treatment were also key to better outcomes.  Understanding Pleurectomy with Decortication (PD) Surgery Pleural mesothelioma is a virulent cancer that occurs on the membrane around the lungs. There is no cure for mesothelioma. Even with the best treatment, the cancer usually comes back. The goal of most…

Repeated Mesothelioma Surgeries Credited with Japanese Man’s Survival
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Repeated Mesothelioma Surgeries Credited with Japanese Man’s Survival

ByAlex Strauss

Can repeated mesothelioma surgeries extend peritoneal mesothelioma survival? A new case report out of Japan suggests the answer may be yes.  The article recounts the case of a patient with peritoneal mesothelioma. Each time surgeons removed a mesothelioma tumor, a new one would occur in a different location.  The man had four separate mesothelioma surgeries over the course of five years.  Repeated mesothelioma surgeries are not the norm. But this treatment approach may be the reason for the man’s unusually long mesothelioma survival.  Surgical Treatment of Peritoneal Mesothelioma Peritoneal mesothelioma accounts for about 20 percent of mesothelioma cases in the US each year. It occurs on the membrane that surrounds the abdominal organs. Because it sits so close to these…

Biphasic Mesothelioma Survival Possible in Select Patients
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Biphasic Mesothelioma Survival Possible in Select Patients

ByAlex Strauss

A new report contains some hopeful news about biphasic mesothelioma survival.  Biphasic mesothelioma is the rarest subtype of a rare cancer. It is also the subtype that is hardest to treat.  Biphasic mesothelioma survival is typically shorter than other subtypes. But Italian researchers say, with the right combination of mesothelioma treatments, patients with this subtype can achieve long-term survival. Subtypes and their Impact on Biphasic Mesothelioma Survival All pleural mesothelioma tumors grow on the membrane that surrounds the lungs. When this membrane is healthy, it is flexible and expands naturally with each breath.  When a mesothelioma tumor grows on this membrane, it can restrict the lungs and make it hard to breathe. As tumors grow, mesothelioma can spread to other…

Minimally Invasive Lymph Node Staging May Prevent Unnecessary Mesothelioma Surgery
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Minimally Invasive Lymph Node Staging May Prevent Unnecessary Mesothelioma Surgery

ByAlex Strauss

A minimally invasive procedure for lymph node staging may help some pleural mesothelioma patients avoid the pain and risk of surgery. That is the conclusion of a recent study on endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA).  EBUS-TBNA is a minimally invasive method for testing the lymph nodes deep in the chest (mediastinal lymph nodes). If lymph node staging shows evidence of pleural mesothelioma, surgery is less likely to be effective.  Mediastinal Lymph Node Staging and Mesothelioma Pleural mesothelioma is a rare cancer that starts on the membrane around the lungs. It can spread to the lungs and other organs and is usually fatal.  The mediastinal lymph nodes are located in the area between the lungs. When the body is fighting…

Large Study Finds Treatment Combination Leads to Long-Term Mesothelioma Survival
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Large Study Finds Treatment Combination Leads to Long-Term Mesothelioma Survival

ByAlex Strauss

There is more evidence that surgery and intraperitoneal chemotherapy can lead to long-term mesothelioma survival. The news comes from an Australian study of more than 1,200 cancer patients. The study finds that one in five peritoneal mesothelioma patients who had this treatment combination were still alive 10 years later.  Peritoneal Cancer Survival with Surgery  Peritoneal cancers occur on the lining of the abdomen. Peritoneal mesothelioma starts on this peritoneal membrane. Some other peritoneal cancers start elsewhere in the body and spread to the peritoneum. The new Australian study analyzed the cases of peritoneal cancer patients who had cytoreductive surgery between 1996 and 2018. Cytoreductive surgery aims to remove as much of the cancer as possible. Past studies have found that…

HITHOC Treatment Deemed Safe for Some Pleural Mesothelioma Patients
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HITHOC Treatment Deemed Safe for Some Pleural Mesothelioma Patients

ByAlex Strauss

German doctors testing the HITHOC treatment for pleural mesothelioma say it is a “safe therapeutic option”. The key to success is careful patient selection. Pleural mesothelioma is a rare cancer linked to asbestos. Tumors grow on the membrane that surrounds the lungs. Doctors have not yet found a cure for mesothelioma.  HITHOC treatment involves rinsing heated chemotherapy drugs through the chest after mesothelioma surgery. The new study suggests that this advanced approach may help certain mesothelioma patients live longer.  Understanding Pleural Mesothelioma Tumors To understand how HITHOC treatment works, it is important to understand how and where mesothelioma tumors grow.  Pleural mesothelioma tumors start on the lining around the lungs called the pleura. As tumors grow, the pleura thickens and…

PIPAC May Make More Patients Candidates for Mesothelioma Surgery
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PIPAC May Make More Patients Candidates for Mesothelioma Surgery

ByAlex Strauss

Researchers in France have come up with a way to turn some people with inoperable peritoneal mesothelioma into good candidates for mesothelioma surgery.  They are using a new technique to spray chemotherapy drugs directly onto peritoneal tumors in order to shrink them.  In some cases, the technique shrunk mesothelioma tumors enough that they could be surgically removed with the CRS/HIPEC procedure.  What Makes a Good Candidate for Mesothelioma Surgery A number of factors influence whether patients are good candidates for mesothelioma surgery. Patients have to be in otherwise reasonably good health so that their body can handle the surgery. It is also critical that their mesothelioma not be so widespread in their abdomen that it would be impossible for surgeons…

Mesothelioma Survival Rates Have Remained Flat for Decades
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Mesothelioma Survival Rates Have Remained Flat for Decades

ByAlex Strauss

Mesothelioma survival rates have stayed steady for decades, even though treatments are improving. According to more than 25 years worth of data from the National Mesothelioma Virtual Bank, people with malignant mesothelioma live a median of 15 months. That number has changed little since 1990. Charting Mesothelioma Patients Over Time Researchers from several major US cancer centers compiled the new report. The goal was to chart mesothelioma survival rates over time and identify factors that impact them. The group evaluated mesothelioma survival rates from 888 cases of pleural and peritoneal mesothelioma in the NMVB. The NMVB houses information on more than 1400 mesothelioma cases diagnosed between 1990 and 2017. Overall mesothelioma survival rates stayed right around 15 months. But there…

Adjuvant Radiotherapy Most Effective for Pleural Mesothelioma in Early Stages
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Adjuvant Radiotherapy Most Effective for Pleural Mesothelioma in Early Stages

ByAlex Strauss

New research shows adjuvant radiotherapy is most likely to help pleural mesothelioma patients in the early stages of the disease. By the time mesothelioma is at Stage III or Stage IV, adjuvant radiotherapy is unlikely to improve survival. Researchers at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Texas conducted the study on more than 2,500 pleural mesothelioma patients. Their results appear in the most recent issue of the Journal of Thoracic Disease. The study could help mesothelioma patients and doctors make more informed choices about their care. Defining the Stages of Pleural Mesothelioma The four stages of mesothelioma relate to the severity of the cancer and how far it has spread. In Stage I mesothelioma, the tumor is confined to the pleural…