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The Impact of COVID-19 on Mesothelioma Research
The global pandemic has had a profound impact on all of our lives, not least of these being the ability for malignant mesothelioma researchers to continue their work. With patients fearful of leaving their homes to come in for treatments or examinations and scientists seeing a shortage of funds (and feeling an obligation to participate
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Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation to Fund Additional Studies
Though the nation and world are intensely focused on the COVID-19 crisis and finding effective treatments and vaccines, that in no way diminishes the need for continued attention to other challenging illnesses, including malignant mesothelioma. In recognition of the need for innovative new treatments, the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation recently announced a continuation of its
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BASF and Law Firm Agree to $72.5 Million Settlement With Mesothelioma Victims and Others
After decades of fending off mesothelioma lawsuits by denying the presence of asbestos in its talc, BASF and its long-time law firm have agreed to a $72.5 million settlement to resolve claims that they’d hidden evidence that their talc products contained the carcinogenic material. The settlement will provide compensation to thousands of people harmed by
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Mesothelioma Symptoms Amid Coronavirus (Covid-19)
If you have symptoms you suspect may be malignant mesothelioma but are delaying diagnosis out of fear of COVID-19, you are not alone. Doctors around the world have seen patients cancelling appointments, delaying much-needed surgeries and even skipping life-extending chemotherapy sessions because they don’t want to risk exposure to the virus. Though doing so makes
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New Study Details the Challenge of Moving Mesothelioma Treatment from the Lab to the Clinic
When a mesothelioma patient is first given their diagnosis and the challenges of treating the disease are explained, physicians will point to its long latency, the advanced stage at which it is diagnosed, and its resistance to traditional cancer treatments. A recent study published in the journal Cancers goes into far greater detail reporting the frustration of
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Immigrant Barber’s Mesothelioma Lawsuit Against Talc Company Permitted to Proceed
Before he died of malignant mesothelioma, Vincent Luca recounted a history of exposure to asbestos that tracked his lifelong career as a barber. He and his family filed a lawsuit against Whittaker Clark and Daniels, the company that supplied talc for the Clubman talcum products that he used from 1961 until he retired in 2016,
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Spanish Lung Cancer Group Publishes Updated Summary of Mesothelioma Patient Outcomes
When it comes to cancer treatment and outcomes, every day seems to bring new innovations and improvements. But according to a recently published study from a respected research cooperative of Spanish oncologists, patients diagnosed with malignant pleural mesothelioma continue to face steep challenges and grim overall survival times.
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New Zealand Scientists Warn of Mesothelioma Risk from Construction Projects
The city of Auckland in New Zealand is experiencing unprecedented economic expansion, but the new construction going on to accommodate that growth may be putting the population at risk for malignant mesothelioma. A recent article in the New Zealand Medical Journal has reported that the volcanic bedrock under the city contains erionite, an asbestos-like mineral that –
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Study Reveals That MRI Is Superior to CT at Assessing Peritoneal Mesothelioma’s Invasiveness
Patients diagnosed with malignant peritoneal mesothelioma generally experience longer survival times than do those with malignant pleural mesothelioma, and much of the difference is attributable to the success of a surgical procedure called cytoreductive surgery with HIPEC, or Heated Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy. The procedure’s success is partially determined by how invasive the patient’s cancer is, and
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GPS for Cancer Could Aid Mesothelioma Research
The more researchers understand about how malignant mesothelioma gains a foothold and then spreads throughout the body, the better they will be able to treat it. That’s why specialists who treat the rare and fatal form of asbestos-related cancer are encouraged by news of a new technology they hope will allow them to track the
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More Than 100 Physicians Now Certified to Prescribe Tumor Treating Fields for Mesothelioma
In May of 2019, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the NovoTTF-100L System for the treatment of unresectable malignant pleural mesothelioma. Just over one year later, Novocure, the device’s manufacturer, has announced that over 100 physicians from more than 50 different cancer centers across the United States are now certified to prescribe use of
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Physician with Mesothelioma Wins Legal Case Against UK’s National Health Service
A 44-year-old United Kingdom physician who was diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma two years ago has won her legal case against the United Kingdom’s National Health Service (NHS). She charged the government agency with negligence in failing to protect her and other staff from asbestos.
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Italian Studies Reveal Shortcomings of PET/CT for Identifying Malignant Mesothelioma
Malignant mesothelioma is challenging for many reasons. The rare and fatal asbestos-related form of cancer is only diagnosed in approximately 3,000 patients per year, and this means that studies assessing the effectiveness of treatment are necessarily limited in scope. The disease is not only notoriously resistant to traditional treatment, but also has a long latency
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Court Decides Trial Judge Wrongly Denied Evidence Request in Mesothelioma Trial
A mesothelioma widow will have another day in court after three judges on Pennsylvania’s Superior Court ruled that a Philadelphia trial court had abused its discretion in denying a jury request.
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Study Reveals Treatment and Survival Disparities Between Men and Women with Mesothelioma
Women diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma are known to experience significantly longer overall survival times than their male counterparts. Yet a recent study revealed that once diagnosed with the rare and fatal form of cancer, women are far less likely to receive surgery or chemotherapy than male patients. Female Mesothelioma Patients Are Diagnosed When They Are
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Asbestos Report Warns of Mesothelioma Risk for British Children
Throughout the United States, parents have voiced concern that asbestos contamination in schools might be putting their children at risk for malignant mesothelioma. Multiple schools in Philadelphia have been closed after asbestos discoveries, and a Philadelphia schoolteacher made national news when she revealed her mesothelioma diagnosis. Yet the fears voiced in this country pale in
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Research Encourages Peritoneal Mesothelioma Patients to Consider Radical Surgery
Researchers from a renowned Virginia hospital have published an essential review of outcomes for patients diagnosed with malignant peritoneal mesothelioma. Their retrospective study concludes that patients who are eligible for and undergo radical surgery for their condition live significantly longer than those whose treatment is limited to non-surgical protocols.
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Judge Overseeing Johnson & Johnson Mesothelioma Lawsuit Refuses to Dismiss Punitive Damages
Last February, a New Jersey jury told Johnson & Johnson they needed to pay four mesothelioma victims $750 million in punitive damages. That decision followed a trial that had found the company guilty of selling baby powder contaminated with asbestos, and which had assessed the company $37.3 million in compensatory damages. The punitive damages amount
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Study Dismisses Theory that Radiation Exposure Causes Mesothelioma
When asbestos companies are faced with mesothelioma lawsuits, they frequently defend themselves by trying to cast blame elsewhere. They assert that their asbestos did not cause the illness, and speak of alternative causes for the rare and fatal form of cancer, hoping that juries will be distracted or confused. One of these theories claims that
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Glowing Dye Technology May Guide Future Mesothelioma Surgeries
An exciting new technology being tested by scientists at the University of Pennsylvania may represent a significant positive change in mesothelioma surgery. It could enhance surgeons’ ability to remove previously hidden cells of the rare asbestos-related disease, as well as those of all other types of cancer.
