According to information on ClinicalTrials.gov, a service of the U.S. National Institutes of Health, this is a randomized phase III trial. Video-assisted surgery removes part of the tissue layer covering the inside of the chest cavity, which researchers think may be effective in treating pleural effusion and cause less damage to normal tissue. Talc pleurodesis may keep fluid from building up in the chest cavity. It is not known at this time which thereapy is more effective.

The primary objective of this study, as stated in the project outline, is to compare the effectiveness of these two modes of treatment in terms of 1-year survival, in patients with suspected or proven malignant mesothelioma.

Secondary goals of the study include comparing the control of pleural effusion, comparing procedure-related complications, comparing symptoms and quality of life of these patients at 3, 6 and 12 months after treatment, comparing the length of hospital stay, the exercise tolerance level of these patients at 3, 6 and 12 months after treatment, and to determine the cost to the health service, in terms of resources used for procedures, hospital bed usage and cost of primary and secondary care over 12 months.

Recruiting locations in the UK are Basildon University Hospital, Gelnfield Hospital (Leicester), Guy’s Hospital (London), Papworth Hospital (Cambridge) and Royal Hallamshire Hospital (Sheffield). Principal investigator for the study is Robert Winter, MD, Papworth Hospital.

This study is identified in the U.S. at clinicaltrials.gov by ID number NCT00821860.

For contact and recruiting information, visit the Clinical Trials information page at http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/study/NCT00821860.

SOURCE: myMeso › Mesothelioma clinical trial in UK recruiting participants

The principal investigator for the studay is Dr. Raffit Hassan of the NCI Center for Cancer Research.

According to the NCI bulletin, researchers hope an experimental immunotoxin called SS1 (dsFv)-PE38 (or SS1P) can improve the outcome of patients with unresectable (or inoperable) mesothelioma. Clincial trial information says that SS1P is a “genetically engineered biological agent in which part of a bacterial toxin is linked to an antibody that recognizes the protein mesothelin.”

Mesothelin is the protein found on the surface of epithelial mesothelioma cells and other types of cancer cells. It is hoped that combining SS1P with chemotherapy will lead to increased antitumor activity, as compared with either treatment alone.

“Given the marked synergy between SS1P and chemotherapy in preclinical studies, combining them could potentially result in increased antitumor activity in patients,” Dr. Hassan is quoted in the Bulletin.

For more information, see the Entry Criteria.

Find trial contact information online or call the NCI Clinical Trials Referral Office at 1-888-NCI-1937. The call is toll-free and confidential.

SOURCE: myMeso › Clinical trial for pleural mesothelioma

Debbie was diagnosed with mesothelioma in November 2006, at which time her doctor gave her only a few months to live. That was when Debbie began looking for new treatments. She began chemoembolization in May 2008.

Chemoembolization, which is being pioneered by Dr. Thomas J. Vogl at J.W. Goethe University Hospital at Frankfurt University, introduces chemotherapy directly into a tumor, where it is basically sealed off so that it is concentrated in the area of need. The clinical trial started three years ago, and will continue for about two more years. The treatment is only available at the clinic in Germany.

Recently, BBC News featured Debbie and her efforts to bring chemoembolization to the UK, and beyond.

Watch the video.

SOURCE: myMeso › Debbie hopes to make groundbreaking mesothelioma treatment more widely available

This is truly wonderful and amazing news, particularly for a cancer like mesothelioma, which has no known cure. This sounds pretty darn close for Debbie, who is considered in remission with this amount of tumor gone.

Those who have been following Debbie’s story and have read the Q&A with Dr. Vogl we posted on this site know that chemoembolization is a procedure currently in clinical trials. The process involves introducing chemotherapy directly to the tumor, and basically trapping it there, concentrating it where it is most needed. Dr. Vogl is head of the Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology at J.W. Goethe University Hospital at Frankfurt University.

The clinical trial is currently treating between 300 and 400 patients with primary and secondary lung cancer annually, and about 20 mesothelioma patients.

For more information, see the Q&A with Dr. Vogl.

Read more of Debbie’s story at her blog, Mesothelioma & Me.

SOURCE: myMeso › Theo loves Germany – Debbie’s tumor continues to shrink!

Because there is so much interest in this clinical trial, even though it is currently only available in Germany, I contacted Dr. Vogl to see if he could provide a little more information about the program.

Q: Explain the basic procedure of chemoembolization / locoregional therapy in the treatment of cancer. How does it work?

A: The basic principle of chemoembolization/locoregional therapy is to achieve a transarterial approach to the tumorous lesion. In the treatment of mesothelioma we have to find the direct supply to the cancer. Then the chemoembolization material can be selectively inserted directly to the lesion. A concentration of cytotoxic drugs of up to 20 times higher can be achieved compared to systemic chemotherapy with reduced adverse events. By cutting off the vascular supply, chemotherapy can be retained in the affected region for several weeks.

Q: How did you learn that this treatment is effective for mesothelioma?

A: During treatment of patients with primary and secondary lung cancer we learned that locoregional therapies are effective for the treatment of mesothelioma.

Q: When did this clinical trial begin? (or how long has it been going on?)

A: The clinical trial started three years ago and will be continued for the next two years.

Q: What are the goals of the clinical trial for this treatment?

A: The goals of the clinical trial are to improve local tumor control, to reduce clinical symptoms like breathing problems and pain, and to increase survival.

Q: How many people with mesothelioma are you currently treating in this clinical trial?

A: Currently we treat 300 to 400 patients with primary and secondary lung cancer per year, and we treat about 20 patients with mesotheliomas.

Q: What are the general / overall results you are seeing in the trials?

A: Clinical symptoms and clinical status of the patients have improved. Local tumor control has improved as well.

Q: What is involved in evaluating a person to see if they are a good candidate for this type of treatment? (What is a good candidate?)

A: Normally we need the following material from the patient before treatment: histology of the cancer, therapy protocols so far obtained, images showing the extension of the tumor. A patient with a localized pleuromesothelioma in one half of the chest is a good candidate.

Q: Explain the procedure for someone receiving this treatment – what happens during a typical treatment visit? How long does it take?

A: After local anesthesia, the femoral vein, which is located in the inguinal region, is punctured. Then a small femoral sheath is usually inserted in the vein through which different catheters can be inserted. After displaying the caval vein, a catheter is pushed forward into the tumor feeding vessels after trespassing the pulmonary arteries. For preventing pain analgetic drugs are administered. Then the chemoembolization as well as the embolizing material are applied. Towards the end of the procedure, the catheters and the sheath system are removed and a compression bandage is applied in order to prevent complications in the inguinal region such as hematoma. After surveillance of 6 to 24 hours, in which complications might be detected and treated, the patient will be discharged. Up to 24 hours after the procedure a CT scan is performed in order to evaluate response to treatment or complications.

Q: How often / frequently does a person receive treatment?

A: The patient normally receives the treatment three up to four times in a 1-month interval.

Q: What are typical side effects of treatment?

A: The typical side effects of the treatment are very low. Normally the patient suffers from fatigue. Nausea and an increasing shortness of breathing are also rarely observed.

Q: How would someone apply to participate in this clinical trial? (Is it still open to receive new patients?)

A: If you send me material (medical reports, MR images, CT scans) I can check it and provide a treatment plan thereafter.

If you are interested in learning more about chemoembolization, or being evaluated for possible inclusion in the clinical trial, you can contact Dr. Vogl here:

Prof. Dr. Th. J. Vogl
Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology
University Hospital
Theodor-Stern-Kai 7
D-60596 Frankfurt

Email: T.Vogl@em.uni-frankfurt.de
Contact telephone number: 0049-69-6301-7277

SOURCE: myMeso › A Q&A with Dr. Vogl about mesothelioma trial

ClinicalTrials.gov is a web site registry that provides current information about federally and privately supported clinical trials for a wide range of conditions, with trial locations all over the world. The site is searchable by condition, drug intervention, sponsor and location. The site also provides information about a trial’s purpose, who may participate, locations and phone numbers for more details. The information should be used in conjunction with advice from a patient’s health care provider.

The web site is a service of the U.S. National Institutes of Health, through its National Library of Medicine (NLM), and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. All data and search information on the site is provided by ClinicalTrials.gov. There is no charge for the service.

A clinical trial is a controlled study that allows physicians to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of new drugs or devices. Generally, investigators enroll a small number of patients or volunteers in a clinical trial in an initial pilot program, and then they may expand the program to include more patients or specific criteria as they gather more information. Clinical trials help researchers compare new treatments against other that are already established for treating a certain condition.

Here is a link to mesothelioma studies listed in ClinicalTrials.gov.

SOURCE: myMeso › Find mesothelioma clinical trials at government web site

It is hoped the new treatment will replace or delay the need for the standard treatment in these cases, a pleural pneumonectomy, which involves removal of the lung and which can be extremely debilitating to patients.

According to a press release from the medical center, Dr. Robert Taub, the study’s principal investigator, director of the Mesothelioma Center at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia and professor of clinical medicine at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, says, “Current surgical and chemotherapy treatments of patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma are unsatisfactory, and have not been shown to significantly prolong survival. In this study, we will investigate whether a combination of chemotherapy and radiation targeted directly at the lung’s lining can improve outcomes while avoiding surgery. In addition, this approach has shown to have minimal toxic side effects compared to systemic chemotherapy.”

The Mesothelioma Center is the only one nationwide that is offering this experimental therapy to treat pleural mesothelioma.

The study is being conducted at the Mesothelioma Center within the Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital and Columbia University Medical Center. According to the release, participating patients will receive several rounds of targeted chemotherapy using the drugs cisplatin and doxorubicin via surgically implanted catheters. Some patients will be randomly selected to receive additional systemic (intravenous) chemotherapy using the drugs cisplatin and pemetrexed. All patients will receive targeted radiotherapy using the P-32 radioisotope.

Patients may elect to receive additional surgical treatment, including removal of the affected lung lining or lung. Subsequently, patients will be offered outpatient systemic chemotherapy with cisplatin and pemetrexed.

For more information, visit www.hiccc.columbia.edu.

SOURCE: myMeso › Clinical trial for mesothelioma at NY hospital

According to the company’s news release, available in its entirety on the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation web site, the trial is moving forward after a favorable review of currently available safety and efficacy data from the Phase II portion of the study. This is an international study, expected to enroll 660 patients with testing centers in the United States, Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom. It will be an ongoing randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

Information provided by Merck says the trial will examine the safety, tolerability and anti-tumor activity of oral vorinostat with best supportive care as compared to best supportive care plus placebo in patients with advanced mesothelioma who have failed or are intolerant to prior chemotherapy, icnlucing pemetrexed in combination with either cisplatin or carboplatin.

Primary endpoints of the Phase III trial include overall survival as well as characterization of the overall safety and toxicity of vorinostat in patients with advanced malignant mesothelioma.

Patients interested in more information about the trial and how to enroll should call toll-free 1-866-890-6619 (in the U.S.) and 1-888-577-8839 (outside the U.S.) or visit the Merck Cancer Trials web site.

Zolinza is currently approved in the U.S. for treatment of cutaneous manifestations in patients with cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL) who have progressive, persistent or recrruent disease on or following two systemic therapies.

SOURCE: myMeso › Merck begins vorinostat Phase III meso trial

Of course, on Monday this week, it was announced and reported here that Onconase had failed the primary objective of its late-stage trial. This news was particularly disappointing since the drug already has orphan drug status in the U.S., Europe and Australia due to the very high hopes for its success. Despite failing in its primary objective, however, testing did show that the drug is effective in a secondary effect, helping to prolong the life of those treated after standard chemotherapy has failed.

The report of Onconase’s initial failure prompted WTN’s Clark to revisit Quintessence to find out if the Onconase failure would derail the development of their QBI-139. In his new report, Clarks says he found researchers undaunted and pressing forward. He says they hope to move the drug into clinical trials sometime this summer, and they believe the success of Onconase’s secondary role and hopeful FDA approval in that area will help pave the way for general acceptance of RNase cancer therapies.

In his earlier report, Clark pointed out that QBI-139 has several differences from Onconase in the way it is produced, which he believes will make it inherently more effective than Onconase.

He points out that mesothelioma is a particularly difficult cancer to treat, and wonders if the selection of mesothelioma as a research track by Alfacell was made to help fast-track the development of the drug. Perhaps, he wonders, the drug might be more effective on “more common and easier to treat cancers than mesothelioma.”

SOURCE: myMeso › Quintessence continues with mesothelioma drug

According to Rob Grayson, director of marketing for the Meso Foundation, the event actually started as a purely scientific event, geared toward researchers and scientists, with technical presentations. However, at the time, there were no informational or educational events like it, and they found that patients, families and caregivers wanted to attend.

“Initially, these people would come and sit in on these high-level presentations by scientists, with very technical presentations. We saw the interest and our meeting has now evolved into more of a patient meeting, the scientists speak in more layman’s terms, and we’ve added programs to reach out to people who are also interested in the community of support and the activism that takes place,” Grayson said.

The advocacy element is a new piece of the symposium, added last year when the meeting coincided with debate in the Senate on the Ban Asbestos in America Act, S. 742, sponsored by Senator Patty Murray (D-WA).

“The day we lobbied, they took an administrative vote, and it passed in the Senate. So we’re going back to Washington this year,” Grayson said.

Advocacy efforts this year will include a rallying cry to the House of Representatives to move quickly to pass the legislation in the House, which bans asbestos and provides research funding for mesothelioma. Last week, the Foundation issued an action alert in support of The Bruce Vento Ban Asbestos and Prevent Mesothelioma Act of 2007 (H.R. 3339), the companion to the Senate bill. The bill includes $10 million for mesothelioma research.

“Normally we’d hold the Symposium in a different city each year, but it’s almost the same timing as last year, with the bill pending, this time in the House, so we’re back to Washington,” Grayson explained.

Those attending the Symposium can register to participate in the advocacy efforts, and the Meso Foundation will arrange for them to meet personally with their congressional delegate, and will provide a training session to help advocates prepare for the meeting.

In addition to lobbying for passage of the House bill, Symposium advocates will request that the Senate’s Defense Appropriations Subcommittee maintain, for the second year, mesothelioma’s eligibility to compete for medical research funding from the Department of Defense. In 2007, the DoD appropriated $50 million and included mesothelioma as a research priority for its Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program, effective in the 2008 budget. The Meso Foundation is working for continuing and increasing funds for mesothelioma research in the 2009 defense appropriations bill.

“There currently is no ban on asbestos, so companies can use it however they see fit. We’ve pretty much stopped mining here, but asbestos is still used in about 3,000 products that you could go out and buy right now. Even if we banned asbestos tomorrow, it probably won’t change the rate of sickness for the next 50 years, due to the latency period of asbestos. That’s why the funding for research is so important,” Grayson says. “Advocacy and the call for a ban on asbestos raises awareness, and raises money for research, which is what we need to deal with the illness itself,” he said.

In addition to advocacy, the Symposium again will feature an educational program, with sessions covering topics including Peritoneal Mesothelioma, Pleural Meso Surgical Options, Emerging Therapies, Optimizing Patient Care, and Scientific Advances in Meso Research. Other educational programs will provide instruction on outreach topics including volunteerism, fundraising, peer support and advocacy, to help those who want to make a difference learn how to be most effective.

A Gala Dinner will honor those people living with meso, and recognize outstanding volunteers and advocates for their hard work and dedication to raising awareness. The dinner will feature a unique guest speaker – Seventh grader Lexi Miletto, the granddaughter of Joseph Miletto, who died in 2005 of peritoneal mesothelioma.

Scholarships for Symposium registration fees, as well as for transportation and accommodations, are still available for patients, family members and caregivers who would like to attend. Contact the Meso Foundation at www.curemeso.org or call 805-563-8400 for details.

The Mesothelioma Foundation was started in 1999, by attorney Roger Worthington. Unfortunately, Grayson says, there was an initial stigma because of his association, with people suspicious the Foundation was attempting to gather clients for his firm, so he removed himself from the Board of Directors and the Foundation was re-established as a non-profit, 501(c)3 organization. Today, with 8 staff members, the organization raises $2.5 million annually and funds more than $1 million in research projects.

“Currently, most of our funding goes to seed money to help researchers who have good ideas for treatment to validate their work, and take it to the NIH to get additional funding for the next step of the research,” Grayson explained. “We hope very soon that we’ll be able to fund clinical trials.”

SOURCE: myMeso › MARF announces Mesothelioma Symposium

Complementary medicine is used along with standard medicine, while alternative medicine is used in place of standard treatments.

Complementary and alternative medicine may include dietary supplements, megadose vitamins, herbal preparations, special teas, acupuncture, massage therapy, magnet therapy, spiritual healing, and meditation.

Not long ago, I shared Charlene Kaforey’s good news, when she discovered her mesothelioma mass had diminished by half after completing a first round of cancer vaccines, considered an alternative treatment.

Recent news has included reports of research ranging from the effects of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medicines in combination with chemotherapy, to the use of Chinese mushrooms in homeopathic treatment, to a study indicating traditional chemotherapy might enhance the effectiveness of cancer vaccines, which are currently in clinical trials.

The problem, according to complementary medicine (CM) professor Edzard Ernst, in an editorial published recently in BMJ Clinical Evidence, is that “one side of the debate argues that there is no scientific evidence that can support CM, while the other side believes scientific evidence cannot be applied to CM.”

The danger, he says, is that waiting for absolute evidence might prevent someone from trying a therapy that could be beneficial, but siding with the idea that CAM simply cannot be proven may lead a patient into treatment that could cause more harm than good.

The National Cancer Institute’s Office of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (OCCAM), which coordinates the Institute’s research program in CAM, has established a goal of evaluating data from CAM practitioners with the same rigorous scientific methods employed in evaluating treatment responses with conventional medicine.

Major categories of CAM therapies, as determined by OCCAM, include alternative medical systems (built upon complete systems of theory and practice, like traditional Chinese medicine or homeopathy), energy and electromagnetic based therapies, exercise therapies (like yoga), manipulative and body-based methods, mind-body interventions (like hypnotherapy), nutritional therapeutics, pharmacological and biologic treatments (like vaccines), and spiritual therapies (healing, prayer).

OCCAM is developing the NCI Best Case Series (BCS) program based on its evaluations of CAM therapies, in which it provides an independent review of medical records and medical imaging from patients treated with unconventional cancer therapies.

But whether or not alternative and complementary medicine can be proven effective, people will still seek it out, says Professor Ernst. The “almost insatiable hunger of patients” for CM has driven its importance, he says, despite criticisms, praise or skepticism from the medical community, scientists or politicians, and in spite of the fact that more often than not health insurance does not cover the treatments.

Obviously, this topic – and its accompanying debate – needs much more examination. I will be exploring it more in the future. Do you have an experience with complementary or alternative medicine? Share it with us!

SOURCE: myMeso › Complementary, alternative medicine debate

The results are based on a study of 409 patients, mostly from the United Kingdom, which set out to assess the potential benefits of combining active symptom control, which usually involves steroid drugs and radiotherapy, with chemotherapy. Results showed no real benefit from adding the chemotherapy drugs compared with just treating the symptoms of the disease.

The BBC quotes one of the authors of the study, Dr Richard Stephens from the Medical Research Council Clinical Trials Unit, as saying, “While thousands are and will be affected by this deadly disease, our trial, which is one of the few large trials ever conducted in this disease, emphasizes how difficult mesothelioma is to treat. This is mainly because mesothelioma forms in the lining of the lung. This makes it hard to target.”

One chemotherapy drug, vinorelbine, was shown by the study to have some promise, but researchers do not think blanket chemotherapy treatment is a promising direction for treatment of mesothelioma, according to the Lancet report.

Researchers do not necessarily consider these findings to be bad news, as a study that defines what does not help can be beneficial to patient health because it helps reduce the chance that patients will undergo stressful treatments that are ineffective.

Results of a completely different chemotherapy study conducted by researchers at Duke Comprehensive Cancer Center were released May 18, revealing that chemotherapy given in conjunction with cancer vaccines may actually boost the immune system’s response to the vaccines, according to a report by ScienceDaily.

The Duke study focused on a drug used to treat lymphoma, but could have implications for clinical trials with vaccines being used to treat many cancers including lung cancer, brain tumors and colorectal cancer.

According to the FDA, it is the goal of cancer vaccine clinical trials not to prevent cancer, but to treat existing tumors. The idea is to train the person’s immune system to recognize the living cancer cells and attack them.

In July 2007, the American Association for Cancer Research examined the issue of cancer vaccines and, according to a report by Medical News Today, they found that “ongoing therapeutic cancer vaccine trials have yet to show evidence of vaccines spurring a patient’s immune system to shrink tumors – yet patients who receive these vaccines in trials tend to live longer and respond better to subsequent treatment.”

The full study, titled Cancer Vaccines: Moving Beyond Current Paradigms is available to read online at Clinical Cancer Research.

Full results of the Duke study will be presented May 31 at the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting in Chicago, Ill.

SOURCE: myMeso › Mesothelioma and chemotherapy research

To help you do this, and to help other visitors to myMeso.org find your story, we’ve added a new Meso Map feature. The Map is interactive, and will have markers showing where different people affected by mesothelioma, asbestos disease or lung cancer are located in the United States or around the world. Click on any marker on the map to read their personal story.

On the Map page, you can also access a form that makes it easy for you to submit your own story. You can share as little or as much personal information as is comfortable for you.

The Map can be easily found on the myMeso.org home page, at the top right – just look for the map with the words “Help Raise Awareness.” Or, visit this page directly by copying the link: http://www.mymeso.org/mesothelioma-stories-share-your-story and pasting it into your web browser.

Personal stories are SO important.

Telling your story may give you the outlet you need, to express the frustrations, joy, fear, successes, and anger – the whole range of emotions you experience.

Your story may provide guidance, comfort and a sense of community for people who are facing similar challenges. You may provide just the information about new clinical trials, about your experience with different treatment options, or an outstanding support group that is just what someone else is looking for.

Most of all, sharing your story will help us to put a human face on mesothelioma, which is critical to sparking action to fund research and find a cure.

Whatever you want to say, we’re ready to listen.

So please, visit our Meso Map page to read stories from mesothelioma and lung cancer survivors, and share your story!

SOURCE: myMeso › Meso Map puts a human face on mesothelioma

This week, I found a story that provides even more hope. It seems a Madison, Wisconsin-based biotech firm, Quintessence Bioscience, also has a promising mesothelioma drug in the works that operates along the same lines as ONCONASE, tagged QBI-139. The Quintessence drug is not yet in clinical trials.

Both drugs target RNA in cancer cells. They are therapeutic ribonucleases (RNases), which WTN News (Wisconsin Technology News) writer Steve Clark describes as “ubiquitous enzymes that destroy RNA.” He explains that researchers including the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Ronald Raines, “discovered that RNases from non-human species sometimes are not regulated inside human cells and can cause cell death. Surprisingly, cancer cells are much more susceptible than normal cells to foreign RNases.”

The ONCONASE product is made from purified frog eggs. The Quintessence drug is 95 percent human, but still kills human cancer cells, Clark reports. Both drugs can kill a wide range of different human cancer types, he says, so its application has broad potential. The ONCONASE clinical trial data is from patients with malignant mesothelioma.

Clark reports that Quintessence is optimistic about its QBI-139 surpassing the positive results of ONCONASE. He says that frog-derived ONCONASE has been shown to cause allergic reactions in some patients, which would be mitigated in the 95 percent human-gene QBI-139. Additionally, he reports QBI-139 is less toxic than ONCONASE, which will allow it to be better tolerated by some patients in larger doses.

Currently, Clark reports, QBI-139 is being produced for use in a Phase I clinical trial, which is set to begin this summer and end sometime in 2009. It is anticipated that the trial will be held at the University of Wisconsin Carbone Cancer Center.

Read the full article at WTN News.

Steve Clark, Ph.D., is a former professor and medical researcher at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, and is currently a freelance writer and consultant on biotechnology issues.

SOURCE: myMeso › New mesothelioma drug being developed

About six years after his death, Garmon revisits some of the cancer centers where Larry was treated, and talks to doctors, patients and family members of those suffering from a variety of cancers – pancreatic, lung, breast, prostate.

The documentary explores the complicated maze of cancer treatment, which is so widely varied partly due to the many variations cancer takes within the human body as it mutates genes. It also looks at how cancer affects people’s relationships, with the person battling cancer oftentimes also feeling the pressure to “beat it,” to “win” over cancer, a feeling of pressure that it’s somehow up to them to get well.

Garmon touches on the issue – why are people still dying of cancer? She shows news footage of President Richard Nixon declaring war on cancer. And here we are still fighting.

Larry D’Onofrio built his family’s home, and worked on other construction projects. It is suspected he contracted mesothelioma as a result of asbestos exposure in that work. Garmon wonders, “why him?” when others who worked alongside him are healthy today.

I write about mesothelioma every day because it’s my job. But I’m touched by the people I meet who share their stories. I’m amazed by the patients who agree to clinical trials even when they understand that there probably won’t be a miracle cure for them, but because they understand that by doing so they might help someone after them.

And I’m touched by the people affected by mesothelioma who work for awareness. To reach out from their place of pain to try to bring the issue to light – that’s strength almost unimaginable. Thank you, Linda, for having the strength to share your story, the story of you and Larry and the hardest battle you ever had to fight.

PBS will air the documentary several more times in the coming weeks. If you missed it last night, I urge you to check your local listings and make a point to see it. It’s powerful, and it’s a message more people need to hear.

SOURCE: myMeso › The Truth About Cancer

In addition to its lobbying efforts, the other main focus of the Lung Cancer Alliance is to provide care and counseling to patients diagnosed with lung cancer. A big part of this is to help patients find clinical trials for new medications.

“Right now, there are only about three, maybe four, drugs that are approved for treating lung cancer,” explains Rear Admiral Phil Coady, U.S. Navy (Ret.), chairman of the board for the LCA. “Once you get past that, you’re on your own and there’s nothing else.”

The next step can be participation in a clinical trial testing new cancer-fighting drugs. The LCA has a screening process to help patients find a trial that fits their situation.

“It’s bewildering trying to figure out what’s a good trial for you and what you’re eligible for,” Coady said. “We ask patients questions about their progression, what they are willing to do, where they live, lots of other questions, and then we can process that information against a database of ongoing clinical trials and match a patient to where they are a good fit. It gives them another avenue to try something else, to keep hoping.”

They also provide patient support services like the Phone Buddy program, a peer-to-peer support network for people with lung cancer and their family members and caregivers, as well as an online forum where lung cancer survivors and their families can network with other people who are struggling with the illness.

Finally, LCA strives simply to raise awareness about lung cancer, and to promote early screening.

“Our goal is to save lives. Simple as that,” Coady said.

For more information about LCA and its programs, visit www.lungcanceralliance.org or call the Lung Cancer Information Line at 800-298-2436. Tap into the LCA Survivors Community online at http://lungcancer.clinicahealth.com. Call the Phone Buddy program at 800-298-2436.

SOURCE: myMeso › LCA lobbies – Part 3 – Personal Assistance

Veglin is undergoing clinical trials at the University of Southern California’s Keck School of Medicine, and, in August 2007, MESORFA teamed up with doctors at the Yale Cancer Medical Center in an endeavor to meet the needs of the mesothelioma patients on the East Coast.

Veglin inhibits VEGF proteins, halting the formation of blood vessels and limiting the ability of tumors to grow and spread. Veglin is an antisense oligonucleotide, meaning that it can bond to messenger RNA (nucleic acid that directs protein production) and block the production of VEGF proteins.

Trials are targeting patients that have already undergone chemotherapy, and also newly diagnosed patients.

To determine if you qualify for Veglin, please contact Jennifer Paul, Executive Director, by calling 1-800-909-MESO (6376).

SOURCE: myMeso › MESORFA supports Veglin trials

The vascular disrupting agent (VDA) is under investigation in treating specific types of cancer with high unmet medical need and poor prognosis. Mesothelioma is included in the study, and is entering Phase II clinical trials.

The company reports favorable findings in mesothelioma patients in a Phase I trial. Based on these results, Cytopia is beginning feasibility analysis for a Phase II study in mesothelioma patients who have failed the currently approved drug, Alimta (pemetrexed).

The single-arm study will include 20-30 patients in Australia, the United States and Asia. The company hopes that activity in second-line mesothelioma could lead to expedited drug approval and a fast to-market strategy for the compound in this cancer indication. They expect to file reports on this study in the third quarter of 2008.

Cytopia, Ltd., is an Australian biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of new drugs to treat cancer.

SOURCE: myMeso › Australian company advances anti-cancer drug

The study was based on the fact that because mesothelioma initially progresses on the surface of the pleura and peritoneum without forming masses, it has been difficult to diagnose at an early stage, so it would be useful to identify a tumor marker that would help in identifying it.

Researchers had previously identified N-ERC/mesothelin as a potential biomarker for mesothelioma. The recent study used a newly developed ELISA (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) system to gather data in clinical trials.

The report states that 102 healthy volunteers were recruited for the study, as well 39 patients diagnosed with mesothelioma, 53 patients diagnosed with diseases that should be distinguished from mesothelioma, and 201 subjects diagnosed with asbestos-related nonmalignant diseases.

The findings show that N-ERC/mesothelin is a “very promising tumor marker for mesothelioma, especially epithelioid mesothelioma.” Serum N-ERC/mesothelin levels showed that the median values from patients with mesothelioma were extremely high compared with levels from other patients.

Researchers participating in the study represented Juntendo University School of Medicine, National Organization Tokyo Hospital, Fukujuji Hospital, Hirano Kameido Himawari Clinic, Immuno-Biological Laboratories Co., Ltd., Hyogo Prefectural Tsukaguchi Hospital, Yokosuka Kyosai Hospital, St. Marianna University School of Medicine, and Tohoku University Hospital.

SOURCE: myMeso › Study may lead to early Meso diagnosis

Treating Mesothelioma

Because this is such a rare cancer, it has been hard for doctors to compare the value of different treatments. Since many doctors have little or no experience treating this disease, you may be referred to a specialist at a large medical center.Treatment options include surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy.One problem with treating mesothelioma is that it does not grow as a single mass. Instead it tends to spread along surfaces, nerves, and blood vessels. This makes it hard for one or more types of treatment to get rid of all of the disease.While surgery is not likely to cure the cancer, it might extend the patient’s life.Depending on the type and stage of the cancer, chemotherapy may be given as the main treatment or along with surgery. Chemotherapy for this disease is given to relieve symptoms, not to cure the cancer.As a rule, radiation treatment doesn’t help much for mesothelioma, and the need to treat a large part of the lung leads to problems with lung damage. But radiation can be used along with surgery to kill small areas of cancer that cannot be seen and removed during surgery. It can also be used as a way to ease symptoms such as shortness of breath, pain, bleeding, or trouble with swallowing. If fluid builds up in the chest, radioactive drugs can be put into the space after the fluid is drawn out. This might help keep the fluid from coming back.

New in Mesothelioma Research

There is always research going on in the area of mesothelioma. Much of this research has focused on learning exactly how asbestos changes normal cells and their DNA to cause cancer. Understanding how these fibers produce cancer might help us find ways to prevent those changes.Now that we know about the dangers of asbestos, we can limit or stop its use in homes, public buildings, and the workplace. But rules to protect people from asbestos are much less strict (or they do not exist at all) in some other countries.Research is also going on to learn about the role (if any) of a virus (SV40) that has been linked to mesothelioma in some studies.Because chemotherapy drugs have not worked very well against advanced mesothelioma, several new ideas are now being studied. These include drugs which kill cancers by stopping their blood supply and drugs which interfere with the ability of some cancer cells to grow quickly.Doctors are always learning more about the best way to treat people with mesothelioma. Treatments that combine surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy are now being studied and may provide the most promising option for some patients.New drugs, along with other types of treatments, are now being tested in clinical trials.Another new approach is a type of gene therapy. This treatment uses special viruses that have been changed in the lab. The virus is injected into the space around the lungs where it infects the cancer cells. When this happens, the virus in turn injects a gene into the cancer that may help immune system cells to attack the cancer.

Research at UAB

The University of Alabama Birmingham (UAB) Comprehensive Cancer Center is a research and teaching hospital, and is currently conducting a number of studies on the treatment of mesothelioma.In 2005, UABs Spring/Summer magazine published information about ongoing studies being conducted by Katri Selander, M.D., Ph.D., a Cancer Center Associate Scientist, and Pierre Triozzi, M.D., about the effects of bisphosphonates on cancer cells.Bisphosphonates are drugs that are commonly used to treat and prevent osteoporosis. They also are used to treat metastatic breast and prostate cancers.The UAB article reported that Drs. Selander and Triozzi “have examined the effects of bisphosphonates on cancer cell cultures and in animal models, and have found that the drugs kill mesothelioma cells in both.” Further results of these studies were reported in the May 1, 2006 issue of Clinical Cancer Research, Vol. 12, 2862-2868; and in the European Journal of Pharmacology, Volume 559, Issue 1, dated March 15, 2007. Key points of the article in Clinical Cancer Research said that “the diagnositc use of radioactive bisphosphonates has revealed the accumlation of bisphosphonates in mesothelioma” and said that results of the studies “support further study of bisphosphonates in the management of mesothelioma.” The European Journal of Pharmacology report states that “Pre-clinical studies indicate that bisphosphonates also ihibit the growth of various cancer cells in vitro” and “in … mouse AB-12 mesothelioma cells.” For more information, visit UAB’s Comprehensive Cancer Center.

SOURCE: myMeso › Mesothelioma Treatment Options

There are links on this page to a number of web sites that provide medical information and information about asbestos, exposure to which is the leading cause of Mesothelioma. Check back regularly, as I will be adding to that list of links in addition to posting new information here.

Here is a good general definition, from the University of Alabama Birmingham (UAB) Medical Center, which has a Mesothelioma Clinic at its Comprehensive Cancer Center :

Q: What is mesothelioma and who is at risk?

A: Mesothelioma is an aggressive form of cancer in which cells of the mesothelium (the membrane that covers and protects most of the internal organs) become abnormal, form tumors, and grow without control or order. The disease usually affects the surface of the lung or less commonly the lining of the abdomen. It is relatively uncommon, with 2,500-3,000 new cases diagnosed in the United States each year. The major risk factor is working with asbestos, but the disease has been reported in some individuals without any known exposure to it. An experimental drug, Pemetrexed®, has shown promise in treating advanced mesothelioma. The UAB Mesothelioma Clinic and Comprehensive Cancer Center offer clinical trials for treating the disease. Early referral for the best treatment is important after diagnosis.

UAB is a research and teaching hospital, and is currently conducting a number of studies on the treatment of mesothelioma.

In 2005, UAB’s Spring/Summer magazine published information about ongoing studies being conducted by Katri Selander, M.D., Ph.D., a Cancer Center Associate Scientist, and Pierre Triozzi, M.D., about the effects of bisphosphonates on cancer cells.

Bisphosphonates are drugs that are commonly used to treat and prevent osteoporosis. They also are used to treat metastatic breast and prostate cancers.

The UAB article reported that Drs. Selander and Triozzi “have examined the effects of bisphosphonates on cancer cell cultures and in animal models, and have found that the drugs kill mesothelioma cells in both.”

Further results of these studies were reported in the May 1, 2006 issue of Clinical Cancer Research, Vol. 12, 2862-2868; and in the European Journal of Pharmacology, Volume 559, Issue 1, dated March 15, 2007.

Key points of the article in Clinical Cancer Research said that “the diagnositc use of radioactive bisphosphonates has revealed the accumlation of bisphosphonates in mesothelioma” and said that results of the studies “support further study of bisphosphonates in the management of mesothelioma.”

The European Journal of Pharmacology report states that “Pre-clinical studies indicate that bisphosphonates also ihibit the growth of various cancer cells in vitro” and “in … mouse AB-12 mesothelioma cells.”

For more information, visit UAB’s Comprehensive Cancer Center online at www3.ccc.uab.edu or click on the link in my list.

SOURCE: myMeso › Mesothelioma Research