Patients who have been diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma receive different treatments based on where in their body the tumors have formed.
Those with pleural mesothelioma, which forms in the lung cavity, are treated differently than those with peritoneal mesothelioma, which forms in the abdominal cavity.
A recent study out of the University of Illinois took a close look at the various treatment protocols offered to peritoneal mesothelioma patients to determine which offers the longest survival rate and found clear and convincing evidence that those who have cytoreductive surgery live longer than those who opt out of surgery.
It also found that chemotherapy drugs administered orally or through systemic infusions do not experience the same level of success.
In pursuing their investigation, the researchers from the University of Illinois pulled data from the national patient database specific to peritoneal mesothelioma patient results. There were five different treatment types whose outcomes were examined, including:
- Those who received only chemotherapy
- Those who received only surgery
- Those who had chemotherapy prior to surgery
- Those who had surgery followed by chemotherapy
- Those who had no treatment
The results of the study were extremely informative, as they showed that the patients who were treated with the combination of surgery and chemotherapy experienced more benefit one year after the procedure, following that time period the patients who had surgery alone had better and more durable results.
Those who had surgery alone had a median survival of 57 months, followed by a 55-month median survival for those who had surgery and chemotherapy after, and 52-month survival for those who had chemotherapy prior to surgery.
In a report published in the British medical journal Medical Oncology, lead investigator Samer Naffouje, MD, a surgical oncology research fellow at the University of Illinois at Chicago said,
“No difference in overall survival was noted with the addition of chemotherapy to complete debunking regardless of the timing. Complete debulking remains the standard of treatment for malignant peritoneal mesothelioma.”
If you would like information on the latest medical treatment options for mesothelioma, or any other resources available to you as a mesothelioma patient, reach out to the Patient Advocates at Mesothelioma.net. We can be reached at 1-800-692-8608.
