Italian researchers believe that lung sparing surgery can improve survival in mesothelioma patients, even when surgeries are more conservative. Pleurectomy and decortication is the surgery that spares the lungs. It is less comprehensive than the surgery that removes the lungs, which also makes it less dangerous to patients. Doctors at[…]
From the blog
A Virus that Affects Goats Could Help Treat Mesothelioma
Mesothelioma, a cancer of the membrane that surrounds the lungs, abdomen, heart, and testicles is a very aggressive cancer. It spreads very quickly and when the tumors grow big enough, they crowd out organs and make it hard for people to breath. Mesothelioma sufferers can experience coughing, chest pain, and[…]
Epigenetics Used to Improve Immunotherapy for Mesothelioma
Researchers are looking into changing mesothelioma cells to make them more susceptible to immunotherapy. Mesothelioma is a hard cancer to treat, so new approaches need to be developed to try to lengthen and improve mesothelioma patients’ lives. Immunotherapy can work well for some, but for others it does very little,[…]
LMB-100 and Ipilumab Combination Being Tested for Pleural and Peritoneal Mesothelioma
The National Cancer Institute just started a study to see if it could make immunotherapy more potent for treating mesothelioma. The study combines a manmade protein that kills cancer cells called LMB-100 and an immunotherapy drug called ipilumab. The problem with current immunotherapy treatments is they do not work well[…]
GPX-1 Could be used as a Biomarker for Mesothelioma
An enzyme that helps clean up the byproducts of cellular oxidation could potentially be a biomarker for pleural mesothelioma. People with very small amounts of the enzyme were found to survive longer than people who have higher levels of the enzyme. The enzyme is Glutathione peroxidase-1 (GPX-1). It can be[…]
UCARTMESO CAR-T Cell Therapy Can Help Kill Mesothelioma Cells
A new treatment utilizing CAR-T cell therapy could help prevent mesothelioma cells from protecting themselves. The treatment, called UCARTMESO, is being developed by the French biopharmaceutical company Cellectis. The treatment works by targeting cells that overexpress mesothelin, which is an antigen that prevents cells from sending immune suppressive signals. A[…]
Durvalumab and Chemotherapy Extends Mesothelioma Patients’ Lives
Studies are showing that the immunotherapy drug durvalumab can make chemotherapy more effective for treating mesothelioma. Durvalumab is an immunotherapy drug called an immune checkpoint inhibitor. It blocks the protein PD-1, which is used by mesothelioma cells to protect themselves. Researchers believed that if the protein was blocked, mesothelioma cells[…]
A Mesothelioma Blood Test Could Improve Patient Quality of Life
A blood test for mesothelioma could help increase the time between CT scan appointments. The typical way doctors test to see if a treatment is working is called mRECIST, which utilizes CT scans and other measurements. CT scans are expensive though and can lead to larger exposure to ionizing radiation[…]
Follow Up Care for Mesothelioma
Follow-up care is crucial for treating mesothelioma patients. A study out of the United Kingdom found that when patients receive follow-up care, more input from their caregivers, continuity, and more timely information was necessary. The study involved three National Health Service facilities in England. Two of the centers were secondary[…]
SQAP Used Alongside Radiation to Treat Mesothelioma
A chemical that makes cancer cells more sensitive to radiation could potentially help patients with mesothelioma. Radiotherapy utilizes ionizing radiation to damage the DNA of cancer cells, which affects their ability to reproduce and form tumors. Radiation is not always used for mesothelioma patients because mesothelioma cells can be immune[…]
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