| |

Why Genetic Testing for Mesothelioma Patients Is Now Essential

ByHolly Zink
Why Genetic Testing for Mesothelioma Patients Is Now Essential

A new study published in JAMA Network Open recommends that doctors should run genetic tests on their mesothelioma patients to make sure they get the right care.

The study was conducted by researchers from the University of Chicago and the University of Wisconsin.

Mesothelioma is a serious type of cancer that mainly affects the lungs and abdomen. People with this cancer usually don’t live very long, around 18 months on average. The place where the cancer is found can affect how long someone lives.  People with mesothelioma in the abdomen might live a bit longer than those with it in the lungs.

The main cause of mesothelioma is being exposed to asbestos. There is also a chance that some people have changes in their genes that make them more likely to get this cancer. These changes are usually passed down from family members and can increase the risk of other cancers, too.

Doctors do not usually test everyone’s genes for this problem, but it might be a good idea, especially for those with a family history of cancers. Some changes in specific genes, like the BAP1 gene, are common in mesothelioma patients. Knowing about these gene changes can help doctors make better treatment choices and offer advice to families.

Researchers are now using a special test that looks at the genes of cancer cells. This test can also accidentally find these gene changes that run in families. This study looked at a big group of mesothelioma patients who had both their cancer and normal genes tested. They wanted to see how often this special test could find these gene changes.

The researchers in this study looked at data from 161 mesothelioma patients who had their tumors tested along with their normal genes. They found that 78% of patients had genetic changes that could be important, and 16% had changes that were confirmed to be important. These changes could cause a risk for certain types of cancer.

Based on these findings, the study researchers are encouraging universal genetic testing for patients with mesothelioma. The results of this type of testing could lead to better care decisions and stronger outlooks for patients with this type of cancer.

Source

Mitchell OD, Gilliam K, Del Gaudio D, et al. Germline Variants Incidentally Detected via Tumor-Only Genomic Profiling of Patients With Mesothelioma. JAMA Netw Open. 2023;6(8):e2327351. Published 2023 Aug 1. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.27351. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10413174/

Similar Posts

  • |

    Mesothelioma Blood Test May Be Possible

    ByAlex Strauss

    An international team of researchers is studying the proteins found on the surface of cancer cells in an effort to improve mesothelioma diagnosis. The team, made up of scientists from the US, Switzerland, Italy and Chile, has just published their findings on a new kind of test to identify protein-derived mesothelioma biomarkers in blood serum. Mesothelioma is an aggressive cancer of the membranes around organs. Because the most common mesothelioma biomarker, mesothelin, is also overproduced by other kinds of cancer cells, it has only limited diagnostic value. A test to identify a set of proteins produced specifically by mesothelioma cells could greatly improve diagnostic accuracy. Led by Ferdinando Cerciello and Bernd Wollscheid of the Institute of Molecular Systems Biology in…

  • | |

    Micro-RNAs May Offer New Way to Fight Mesothelioma

    ByAlex Strauss

    Scientists at one of the world’s top mesothelioma research centers, the Asbestos Diseases Research institute in Sydney, Australia, say that restoring the expression of certain micro RNAs in the cells of mesothelioma patients may offer a new way to fight the disease. A microRNA is a small RNA molecule which is involved in the regulation of gene expression. According to a new report in the Annals of Oncology, the Australian scientists found reduced expression of the micro RNA-15 family (miR-15/16) in the cells of mice with mesothelioma. “When malignant pleural mesothelioma cell lines were compared with the normal mesothelial cell line MeT-5A, the downregulation of miR-15/16 was 2- to 10-fold,” they report. This finding is consistent with previous cancer research…

  • | |

    Needle Biopsy “Simple, Safe & Accurate” for Mesothelioma

    ByAlex Strauss

    Mesothelioma researchers in China say a biopsy method that involves a single skin puncture can produce good diagnostic results for mesothelioma patients with little pain or risk. The study focused on percutaneous (through the skin) biopsy in patients who had unexplained fluid buildup or swelling in their abdomens. Abdominal distension and fluid buildup (called ascites) can be signs of peritoneal mesothelioma, a rare but aggressive cancer of the abdominal lining caused by exposure to asbestos. Peritoneal mesothelioma accounts for less than 30% of all mesothelioma cases. Because the symptoms may be vague and often develop many decades after asbestos exposure, peritoneal mesothelioma can be especially challenging to diagnose.  Misdiagnosis and under-diagnosis are not uncommon. In the newest study on percutaneous…

  • | |

    Inflammation Both “Friend and Foe” in Mesothelioma

    ByAlex Strauss

    An immune system response that causes mesothelioma symptoms such as fever, fatigue, and weight loss may also be helpful to clinicians as a way to find and treat the disease. Scientists with The Asbestos Diseases Research Institute in Sydney, Australia make that case that both systemic inflammation (throughout the body) and at the site of a tumor – has long been associated with mesothelioma and other cancers. Inflammation results when the body attempts to address the imbalances of cancer by producing more of certain immune system cells. Some inflammatory markers, such as CD+8 T-cells and C-reactive protein, have been linked to better prognosis in mesothelioma. Other inflammatory markers, such as certain macrophages and a high neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, can signal the…

  • | |

    FDG PET-CT Results Could Lead to Improved Mesothelioma Treatment

    ByAlex Strauss

    In a recent study, researchers say a better understanding of certain diagnostic criteria could result in more targeted treatments for malignant mesothelioma. In a recent published report, doctors from the medical school at Dicle University in Diyarbakir, Turkey measured the relationship between PET-CT scan results and survival in 177 patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma. The patients were diagnosed between April 2007 and April 2011. They had a mean age of 55.4 and most (56%) were male. Patients in the study all had FDG PET-CT scans before beginning their mesothelioma treatment. FDG PET-CT scanning is a powerful imaging tool for mesothelioma and other cancers that combines a radioactive tracer with a combination of positron emission tomography and computed tomography scanning.  Because…

  • | |

    Mesothelioma Surgeons Report New Biopsy Technique

    ByAlex Strauss

    A team of surgeons in Maryland have demonstrated how using a standard biopsy tool in a new way could improve the biopsy process for certain mesothelioma patients. An aggressive cancer of the pleural lining around the lungs, malignant pleural mesothelioma usually requires a tissue biopsy to make a definitive diagnosis. Often this is done using a rigid tool called a thoracoscope inserted into the chest wall while the patient is under general anesthesia. However, mesothelioma doctors at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center detail the case of a 79-year-old suspected mesothelioma patient whose biopsy was done in a minimally-invasive way, under conscious sedation, thanks to the novel use of a standard tool. Although the patient had several of the common signs…