Author: Matt Mauney

Doctors at the Swiss Group for Clinical Cancer Research in Zurich, Switzerland, have uncovered a novel, anti-tumor compound that could become a needed second-line treatment for pleural mesothelioma cancer. Their recent multicenter phase II clinical trial conducted in Switzerland and Italy revealed the safety and efficacy of lurbinectedin, a synthetically produced agent that inhibits the…

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Glaring safety issues involving asbestos exposure within the Metropolitan Transportation Authority extend further than the East New York bus depot in Brooklyn, a report from the agency’s inspector general alleges. Inhaling or ingesting tiny asbestos fibers in the air can lead to serious health conditions later in life, including mesothelioma cancer. The inspector general report,…

The post New York’s MTA Ignored Asbestos Dangers for Years appeared first on Mesothelioma Center – Vital Services for Cancer Patients & Families.

Results from a phase III clinical trial comparing Keytruda (pembrolizumab) to standard chemotherapy shows the immunotherapy drug still has a long way to go as a viable treatment option for malignant pleural mesothelioma. Keytruda did not improve progression-free survival for mesothelioma patients who progressed after first-line chemotherapy. The disappointing results from the PROMISE-meso study were…

The post Keytruda for Mesothelioma Flops in Phase III Clinical Trial appeared first on Mesothelioma Center – Vital Services for Cancer Patients & Families.

A mesothelioma patient at West Cancer Center in Memphis, Tennessee, is the first in the country to use NovoTTF-100L, a noninvasive electric therapy treatment, since its approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in May. The FDA’s approval of Novocure’s Tumor Treating Fields device for the treatment of mesothelioma marked the first new FDA-approved…

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Residents in privatized housing on nearly 50 Army installations cited concerns with issues such as lead paint and asbestos, the toxic building material linked to mesothelioma cancer, according to a recent report from the Department of the Army Inspector General. The report, which was made public earlier this month, includes surveys, document reviews and interviews…

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A promising and expensive type of immunotherapy, called CAR T-cell therapy, is now covered by Medicare. This news may affect mesothelioma patients in the future. Chimeric antigen receptor T-cell, or CAR T-cell, therapy involves the laboratory reprogramming of a patient’s T cells, which are a type of white blood cell responsible for protecting the body…

The post Medicare Now Covers CAR T-Cell Therapy for Approved Cancers appeared first on Mesothelioma Center – Vital Services for Cancer Patients & Families.

Extracts from two Italian grape varieties showed distinct anti-cancer activity in three different mesothelioma cell lines, according to a recent multicenter study in Naples, Italy. The in-vitro findings strongly suggest potential of a novel, nonconventional mesothelioma treatment advancement in the future for this aggressive, difficult-to-treat cancer. Previous laboratory studies have shown a negative impact of…

The post Mesothelioma Cells Slowed by Grape-Seed Extracts appeared first on Mesothelioma Center – Vital Services for Cancer Patients & Families.

Beauty Plus Global Inc., the cosmetics and packaging manufacturer behind brands such as City Color and Max Mell, has issued a voluntary recall of four makeup products that tested positive for asbestos contamination. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced the recall Friday in the agency’s latest advisory regarding asbestos-contaminated cosmetics. The four recalled products…

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Pioneering pulmonologists Dr. Steven Albelda and Dr. Daniel Sterman have worked for more than 20 years on developing gene therapy to effectively combat pleural mesothelioma cancer. The payoff may have finally arrived. Albelda and Sterman’s long-awaited, phase III clinical trial will open this month to evaluate the efficacy of TR002, a novel gene therapy drug,…

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U.S. News & World Report named University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston as the No. 1 Adult Cancer Hospital in America for the fifth consecutive year. Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York, Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore and Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer Center in Boston, round…

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The offices of some of President Donald Trump’s top aides, including his daughter Ivanka Trump and senior counselor Kellyanne Conway, have been temporarily relocated as the White House undergoes asbestos abatement work. An asbestos removal project is underway at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue and is expected to be completed by the end of August. The abatement…

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Patients with mesothelioma are now eligible for a multicancer clinical trial studying the effectiveness of personalized immunotherapy at the University of California, San Diego Medical Center. The phase I clinical trial involves a combination of Keytruda (pembrolizumab), a proven immunotherapy drug, and an individualized vaccine based upon the genetic mutations found in each patient’s cancer….

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Patients with peritoneal mesothelioma undergoing a second cytoreductive surgery had a median survival of 92 months, according to a recent study at St. George Hospital and the University of South Wales in Sydney, Australia. That same group of patients also had a five-year survival rate of 71.8%, further illustrating the progress being made in treating…

The post Australian Study Shows Treatment Advances for Peritoneal Mesothelioma appeared first on Mesothelioma Center – Vital Services for Cancer Patients & Families.

The search for a cure of mesothelioma hit another roadblock recently when a once-promising immunotherapy drug, combined with standard chemotherapy, failed to slow disease progression in a phase III study. The multicenter study covering 27 countries involved Ofev (nintedanib), a small-molecule enzyme inhibitor drug that had shown considerable potential in earlier studies. Lancet Respiratory Medicine…

The post Once-Promising Drug Ofev Fails in Mesothelioma Clinical Trial appeared first on Mesothelioma Center – Vital Services for Cancer Patients & Families.

Thoracic surgeon Dr. Robert Cameron, a longtime leader in the fight against pleural mesothelioma cancer, believes there is no benefit to establishing a government-funded national registry for the disease. While many of his colleagues support the idea of creating the first National Mesothelioma Registry, Cameron feels the time, effort and money spent would be better…

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