Precision Radiotherapy Method May Reduce Local Recurrence of Mesothelioma After Surgery
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Precision Radiotherapy Method May Reduce Local Recurrence of Mesothelioma After Surgery

ByAlex Strauss

A radiation delivery method called tomotherapy may be more effective than conformal radiation therapy at keeping mesothelioma tumors from growing back at the original spot after surgery. That is the conclusion of UCLA researchers who compared tomotherapy and 3D conformal radiation therapy (CRT) in 45 patients with advanced pleural mesothelioma over an 8 year period. Of the forty-five consecutive patients, 23 received 3D-CRT and the other 22 received tomotherapy. Kaplan-Meier analysis was used to calculate overall survival, the time it took for a tumor to start regrowing in the same place, and the time it took for metastatic tumors to start appearing outside of the treatment field. Tomotherapy and 3D-CRT are both methods of delivering radiation into a mesothelioma tumor…

Mesothelioma Radiation ‘Boost’: A Surgical Alternative?
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Mesothelioma Radiation ‘Boost’: A Surgical Alternative?

ByAlex Strauss

For mesothelioma patients who are not candidates for surgery, new research suggests that an escalated dose of radiotherapy in the right place may help slow the cancer’s progression. Mesothelioma, a cancer of the lining around the lungs and other organs, is hard to treat with traditional therapies in part because of its atypical configuration. The cancer tends to spread across the thin, membranous tissue of the mesothelium in a ‘sheet’ formation, rather than a solid mass. The odd shape of mesothelioma tumors not only makes them difficult to remove surgically, but can also make them challenging to treat with radiation without harming vital organs beneath such as the lungs. But a group of radiology researchers in Milan, Italy found that,…