Author: Fran Mannino

Removing major organs to achieve a more complete cancer resection did not increase severe complications or hinder survival benefits of aggressive surgery for patients with peritoneal mesothelioma, according to a recent report. The increased complexity of organ resection surgery will not adversely affect long-term outcomes, according to the multicenter study published in Annals of Surgical…

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Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City has begun recruiting patients with pleural mesothelioma for its latest — and potentially most promising — clinical trial involving T-cell therapy. The novel study stems from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s recent Investigational Drug Application approval of ATA2271, a chimeric antigen receptor known as CAR…

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The U.S. House of Representatives last week failed to advance once-promising legislation that effectively would have banned asbestos, frustrating advocates once again. H.R. 1603, titled the Alan Reinstein Ban Asbestos Now Act of 2020, had been expected to pass easily under a Congressional procedure reserved for broadly supported, non-controversial legislation. The bipartisan House Committee on…

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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the immunotherapy combination of Opdivo and Yervoy for first-line treatment of unresectable malignant pleural mesothelioma. It was the first new drug regimen approved for mesothelioma in 16 years and only the second systemic therapy ever. The historic treatment approval for this cancer without a cure was the…

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While the incidence of malignant mesothelioma in the United States continued its gradual decline, the tendency to sue for damages drastically increased in recent years, according to a KCIC study. Lawsuits filed by those stricken with the deadly asbestos-related cancer increased 65.7% from 2007 to 2017. Meanwhile, the overall incidence rate of mesothelioma dropped 16.2%…

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A much-anticipated, phase III clinical trial studying the use of gene therapy to combat pleural mesothelioma cancer has made a promising start. Interest is growing in what many believe could soon change the standard of care for this aggressive cancer with no cure. “I would definitely encourage patients to give this one a try,” Dr….

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A research team at Oslo University Hospital in Norway has opened a mesothelioma clinical trial using the novel UV1 cancer vaccine alongside a promising immunotherapy combination. UV1 is a peptide-based vaccine designed to induce a specific T-cell response and increase the effectiveness of the immunotherapy drugs. This is the first time UV1 will be studied…

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The Science Advisory Committee on Chemicals found considerable failings and an underestimation of danger to the general public in a draft risk evaluation of asbestos submitted earlier this year by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. SACC, which serves as a scientific, peer-review mechanism for the EPA, released its recommendations last week in the ongoing governmental…

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Georgia-Pacific has pledged $1 billion to fund an asbestos trust for bankrupt affiliate Bestwall LLC, clearing the path to a settlement of longstanding liability claims involving mesothelioma cancer. Bloomberg Law reported earlier this month that Georgia-Pacific made the financial commitment to advance a consensual resolution in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of…

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Pharmaceutical giant Merck has teamed up with Novocure to test its cornerstone immunotherapy, pembrolizumab (Keytruda), alongside Tumor Treating Fields. The new phase II clinical research trial is focusing on non-small cell lung cancer and will enroll approximately 66 patients across the U.S. Keytruda, Merck’s anti-PD-1 therapy, works as a checkpoint inhibitor and allows the immune…

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Standard-of-care treatment for unresectable pleural mesothelioma cancer could be changing soon, sparked by a recently completed international study of a novel immunotherapy combination. Patients in the randomized mesothelioma clinical trial who were treated with ipilimumab (Yervoy) and nivolumab (Opdivo) had a median overall survival of 18.1 months, compared to 14.1 months for those receiving chemotherapy….

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When the COVID-19 pandemic struck earlier this year, clinical trials at medical centers around the world slowed enrollment or placed trial activities on hold. As businesses begin to reopen in the United States, more treatment centers are resuming mesothelioma study activities and ramping up enrollment. Clinical research trials offer patients access to experimental mesothelioma treatments…

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A mesothelioma clinical trial involving genetically modified T cells has opened to considerable acclaim, shrinking tumors in the first five patients who were treated. The phase I portion of the clinical trial is designed to define the safety profile and optimal dosage level of TC-210, a novel immunotherapy targeting mesothelin, a cell-surface protein often overexpressed…

The post Mesothelioma T-Cell Therapy Shows Early Effectiveness in Trial appeared first on Mesothelioma Center – Vital Services for Cancer Patients & Families.

For the sixth consecutive year, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston was named the top Adult Cancer Hospital in America by U.S. News & World Report. Several of the top-tier cancer centers on the list have specialty programs for mesothelioma that contributed to their high ranking. The 2020-21 Best Hospitals for Cancer…

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The continued underutilization of aggressive surgery for peritoneal mesothelioma is shortening survival time dramatically for patients who could qualify for, and benefit from, the highly effective procedure. Only a third of those diagnosed with peritoneal mesothelioma are undergoing potentially curative cytoreductive mesothelioma surgery, according to a comprehensive study of the National Cancer Database by researchers…

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