One of the shining lights in mesothelioma research can be found at the Baylor College of Medicine Lung Institute, where the Houston-based center’s Mesothelioma Treatment Center has long been on the cutting edge of both research and patient care. Now their associate professor of surgery Dr. Bryan Burt is taking their investigations one step further,
When a patient is diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma, they almost immediately sit down with their care team to create a care plan. With the treatments currently available, that plan is likely to include chemotherapy, and if possible it will include either extra pleural pneumonectomy (EPP) surgery or pleurectomy with decortication (P/D) surgery, with the latter
A researcher who has devoted ten years to finding the right target for cancer-fighting CAR-T cells has announced extremely positive results from a Phase 1 clinical trial focused on patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma. The study injected the treatment directly into the chest cavity of 27 patients rather than delivering the medication intravenously, and delivered
A protein that is found in the brain and other tissues has been linked directly to malignant mesothelioma, making it easier for physicians to diagnose the condition, as well as to craft a tailored course of treatment and set expectations for patients as to their prognosis. The protein is a biomarker known as BDNF, or
A New York jury has awarded $25 million in compensatory damages to a 66-year-old woman who blames their talc-based baby powder product for her malignant mesothelioma. Donna Olson and her husband Robert filed their lawsuit in 2017, indicating that she had used both Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder and their scented Shower to Shower product
One of the most common treatment protocols used to ease symptoms for patients diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma is a procedure known as talc pleurodesis. The treatment addresses the discomfort and breathing difficulties caused by pleural effusions, a build-up of fluid around the lungs. This buildup causes tremendous pressure and makes it nearly impossible for patients
In the quest to find a cure for malignant mesothelioma, one of the biggest obstacles that researchers encounter is the lack of patient sample information available to those outside of major cities and cancer research centers. One potential solution lies in the efforts of Nikhil Wagle, a medical oncologist out of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and
Malignant mesothelioma is one of the rarest forms of cancer, and testicular mesothelioma is rarer still. Like other forms of mesothelioma, it is caused by exposure to asbestos. Though a company accused of responsibility for a former oil refinery worker’s testicular cancer attempted to contest this known fact, a California jury rejected their argument and
One of the top goals of mesothelioma researchers is to find a way to diagnose malignant mesothelioma earlier. The rare and fatal form of cancer typically does not get diagnosed until it is in its latest stages, and that makes effective treatment virtually impossible. While scientists have spent countless hours trying to devise more accurate
Between malignant pleural mesothelioma and malignant peritoneal mesothelioma — the two most frequently-made mesothelioma diagnoses — peritoneal mesothelioma occurs far less frequently. Among the roughly 3,500 patients diagnosed with the deadly form of asbestos-related cancer in the United States each year, only about 700 have the tumors appear in their abdominal lining: almost all others