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Cancer Care Inequities May Impact Minorities with Mesothelioma
Mesothelioma is just one form of cancer in which racial inequities can impact the availability of top-of-the-line treatment. Racial, geographic, and socioeconomic disparities in telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic was a focus of concern at last week’s annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) meeting, as well as of a separate report
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Study Reveals Occupations at Highest Risk for Mesothelioma and Asbestosis
While the United States Environmental Protection Agency inches closer to imposing a hoped-for ban of asbestos, an occupational risk report out of Canada has revealed exactly which jobs in that country put workers at the greatest risk for malignant mesothelioma and asbestosis. Canada imposed its own ban on the carcinogenic material in 2018.
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Judge Rejects Asbestos Companies’ Claim that Mesothelioma Victim Assumed Risk
Laura Walls lost her husband Robie to malignant mesothelioma in October of 2020, just 13 months after his diagnosis with the rare asbestos-related disease. Before his death the couple filed claims against multiple asbestos companies whose products he worked with during his 42-year career as a tractor-trailer fleet mechanic. Though the companies argued that Mr.
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Phase I Study of Immunotherapy Combination Reveals Antitumor Effect in Advanced Mesothelioma
A Phase I study of a novel therapy has yielded an encouraging anti-tumor effect and extended survival for patients with late state malignant pleural mesothelioma. Patients who had received and progressed with, or were refractory to, frontline pemetrexed-based therapy were dosed with a combination of SELLAS Life Sciences’ galinpepimut-S (GPS) and the checkpoint inhibitor nivolumab.
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Can Improvements in Gut Biome Boost Mesothelioma Patients’ Response to Immunotherapy?
New research revealed at the 2022 American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting suggests that making improvements to the gut biomes of mesothelioma patients may boost their response to immunotherapy. Two studies out of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center were specific to patients with glioblastoma, melanoma, non-small cell lung cancer, and
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Improvements in HIPEC Procedure Mean Better Outcomes for Mesothelioma Patients
While malignant mesothelioma is always considered a terminal condition, there have been some significant breakthroughs in treatment over the years, particularly for those diagnosed with the peritoneal type of the disease. Among the most notable is the introduction of the CRS/HIPEC, or cytoreductive surgery/heated intraperitoneal chemotherapy treatment. A recent study confirms that the procedure has
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Asbestos Bankruptcy Plan Overwhelmingly Approved by Mesothelioma Victims
Owens-Illinois is a glass company that has already paid mesothelioma victims and others affected by their asbestos-contaminated products approximately $5 billion in compensation. Last month the company received approval from a Delaware bankruptcy court to move forward with a Chapter 11 bankruptcy plan that sets aside $610 million for thousands of asbestos claimants that remain.
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Study Confirms Prognostic Value of PET/CT in Pleural Mesothelioma
Diagnosis is just the beginning of a long road for patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma. Once their condition is confirmed they submit to a variety of tests that help their healthcare team identify the best treatment available, as well as to provide them with a realistic sense of how long they are likely to survive.
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California Court Considers Use of Mesothelioma Victim’s Genetic Material
For decades, the risk of malignant mesothelioma posed by exposure to asbestos didn’t stop companies from manufacturing and selling products contaminated with the carcinogen. That has led to negligence lawsuits being filed and multi-million-dollar jury verdicts awarding compensation to victims. In response to these lawsuits, asbestos companies have turned to novel defenses, the latest of
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California Mesothelioma Trial Ends with $43 Million Award
Last week, a 64-year-old California woman diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma was awarded $43 million in compensatory damages by a Los Angeles County jury. Deanne Warren and her husband Craig blamed Algoma Hardwoods Inc. for her fatal condition, accusing the company of negligence related to asbestos in its fireproof doors.
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Japanese Researchers Create Novel Delivery Approach for Targeted Mesothelioma Treatment
In the last several years, targeted therapies have shown great promise in the treatment of malignant pleural mesothelioma, but the rare, asbestos-related form of cancer continues to claim lives. In an attempt to find a more effective method of delivering these state-of-the-art drugs, researchers from the Hyogo College of Medicine have developed a minimally invasive,
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Navy Veteran’s Mesothelioma Death Blamed on Asbestos in Boilers
Jerome J. Gehant served in the Navy for less than four years, but that short stint is being blamed for his malignant mesothelioma death. Gehant worked on just one ship – the USS America — and his only duty was service as a boiler technician. His family blames his illness and subsequent death on asbestos in the insulation,
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Judge Rebukes “Unreasonably Lengthy and Redundant” Deposition of 84-Year-Old Mesothelioma Victim
Asbestos companies make use of numerous questionable strategies while defending themselves against mesothelioma claims. They delay proceedings knowing that mesothelioma patients may die from the aggressive form of cancer before their case goes to court, and they’ve been known to put frail plaintiffs through exceedingly long hours of testimony. Following a recent episode, a New
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Jones Act Asbestos-Related Cancer Claim Survives Motion to Dismiss
The statute of limitations in mesothelioma lawsuits and other similar personal injury cases is three years from when the victim knows or should have known of their illness. Though this may seem clear cut, asbestos companies often try to use this limitation to their advantage to have cases dismissed. A recent attempt to have a
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Report Exposes Role of Rubber Factories in Mesothelioma and Other Asbestos-Related Diseases
Malignant mesothelioma is a rare and deadly form of cancer caused by exposure to asbestos. It is largely linked to occupational exposure to the carcinogen, and many of its victims worked with insulation or construction materials, or in high-heat settings. One group of those exposed to asbestos are the former employees of rubber factories in
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North Carolina Mesothelioma Victim Files Suit Against Multiple Asbestos Companies
More than forty years after Augustus A. Adams left his work at the Kinston, North Carolina E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Company plant, he was diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma. He and his wife Diane filed suit against a long list of companies whose products he blames for having exposed him to asbestos fibers and causing
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Asbestos Company Fails in Bid to Overturn $13.5 Million Mesothelioma Verdict
In 2020, Raymond Budd and his wife Vickie filed a lawsuit accusing Kaiser Gypsum Company of negligence in failing to warn about the asbestos in their joint compound that they believe caused Raymond’s malignant mesothelioma. After the couple won a $13.5 million verdict, Kaiser moved for dismissal of the verdict and called for a new
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Cancer Pill Delivers Promising Results in Mesothelioma Patients
Medical oncologists at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York have just completed a phase 2 clinical trial that has delivered promising results for many patients with malignant mesothelioma. Researchers at the esteemed medical facility found that a drug called tazemetostat delivers significant disease control for the more than 50% of pleural mesothelioma patients
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Mistakes in Identifying Mesothelioma Subtype Can Have Critical Impact
When it comes to treating malignant mesothelioma, it is important that patients receive the best care possible. Seeking medical treatment from physicians who are experienced in treating the rare and aggressive form of cancer makes an enormous difference, both in terms of availability of state-of-the-art treatment and in ensuring that testing is done with meticulous
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CDC Reports Increasing Mesothelioma Deaths Among Women
Malignant mesothelioma is a rare and dangerous form of cancer caused by exposure to asbestos. Because of its direct link to the toxic material, which has long been used in construction, insulation, and high-heat settings, it is generally considered an occupational disease and has traditionally been most prevalent in men. But a recent report published
