Mesothelioma Pages

A recent medical study has taken a closer look at possible benefits of dignity therapy for fatally ill patients.  Testing included a group of randomly selected patients in Canada, US and Australia, with a life expectancy of below six months. These individuals underwent a series of physiological sessions to provide support and enhance well being in the midst of their grim circumstances. If proven beneficial, dignity therapy could be a welcome addition to palliative mesothelioma treatment.

Study details were published by journal Lancet Oncology in a recent article. One hundred and sixty five patients from the three countries listed were included in the study. National Cancer Institute and National Institutes of Health provided funding. According to Lancet Oncology’s article “Dignity therapy is a unique, individualised, short-term psychotherapy that was developed for patients (and their families) living with life-threatening or life-limiting illness.”

Mesothelioma patients are often living out short life expectancies. Following proper diagnosis of the cancer, average life expectancy is just eighteen months. This short time comes up in sharp contrast against mesothelioma’s characteristic latency period of twenty to fifty years. Mesothelioma symptoms do not demonstrate until the end of this latency period when the disease has become quite aggressive. Proper diagnosis can be difficult as mesothelioma signs and symptoms mimic those of bronchitis or pneumonia.

Mesothelioma is specific to protective organ lining and is most often found in lung lining, although it can affect other organs such as the heart or diaphragm. Mesothelioma is caused by exposure to toxic chemical asbestos. Once asbestos fibers are inhaled they can become lodged in internal tissues and begin a mutative process leading to tumor development. Malignant mesothelioma tumors spread through surrounding areas in irregular web-like patterns.

Mesothelioma treatments include surgeries, chemotherapy and radiation therapy. There is no known cure for mesothelioma, although research groups around the world continue the vigilant search.

About three thousand American families, and an estimated twenty thousand worldwide, suffer with mesothelioma each year. Dignity therapy is a promising approach to healthy coping for mesothelioma patients and their loved ones.

Although study tests did not show any distinct medical differences between those who received dignity therapy and those who did not, benefits were noted. Patients who received dignity therapy experienced heightened spiritual well being and lessening sadness. According to the Lancet Oncology review “Although the ability of dignity therapy to mitigate outright distress, such as depression, desire for death or suicidality, has yet to be proven, its benefits in terms of self-reported end-of-life experiences support its clinical application for patients nearing death.”

In 2005 Hooisweng Ow, author and researcher, and Ulrich Wiesner, Cornell Professor of Materials Science and Engineering developed “Cornell dots,”—a new light technology to aid in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. “Cornell dots” will be specifically helpful in early diagnosis of rare and characteristically small-tumor cancers, like mesothelioma. Mesothelioma is a cancer of abdominal organ lining, most often found in lung lining. Unlike other cancers that affect deeper tissues, malignant mesothelioma tumors are typically much wider than they are deep; growing through the mesothelium—a thin, membranous covering found around inner organs.

Journal of Clinical Investigation published an article detailing “Cornell dots.” Although other attempts have been made to develop the same diagnostic aid, “Cornell dots” are the only product of its class to receive Food and Drug Administration approval. Consisting of silica nanoparticles that have been covered with a polyethylene glycol (PEG), “Cornell dots” do not register as intruders upon entry into the human body, allowing them to travel and attach to cancer cells without being attacked by the bodies protective cells. In response to positron emission tomography (PET) imaging, “Cornell dots” glow—acting as a beacon to guide physicians and medical providers to cancerous cells.

This exciting new technology can aid not only in finding and diagnosing cancers, but also in treatment follow up and tracking growth and spread of tumors. According to the researchers, this tool “enables visualization during surgical treatment, showing invasive or metastatic spread to lymph nodes and distant organs, and can show the extent of treatment response.”

Mesothelioma is caused by toxic chemical asbestos, a natural mineral found in rock deposits. Asbestos fibers begin a mutative process of cancer development once they are inhaled or ingested into the body. There are mesothelioma treatments available, but no known cure.

Mesothelioma is characterized by an extensive latency period—often between twenty and fifty years. Unfortunately, mesothelioma symptoms do not demonstrate until the diseases final and most aggressive stage—well beyond a time that allows for curative treatment. Most mesothelioma patients have no idea they are suffering with cancer until it is too late.

Turmeric is a spice made from rhizomes of a plant in the ginger family, and is often used in cooking to add flavor and color. A recent study by National Center for Vermiculite and Asbestos-Related Cancers—a partnership between Karmanos Cancer Institute and Wayne State University’s Center for Occupational and Environmental Medicine—suggests that turmeric could provide more to the world than culinary flair. Curcumin, a derivative of turmeric, is being tested as a treatment partner for use on mesothelioma cancer.

Mesothelioma is a rare and aggressive cancer affecting protective lining of abdominal organs, most often lung lining. Caused by exposure to toxic carcinogen asbestos, mesothelioma is characterized by a long latency period and short life expectancy following diagnosis. About three thousand Americans and twenty thousand people worldwide each year suffer with mesothelioma while asbestos use continues to go unregulated in many countries. Although there are mesothelioma treatments available—in select medical facilities—which include surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy, these focus on alleviating pain and extending patient life expectancy. There is no cure for mesothelioma.

The curcumin study found that on a cellular level, curcumin elevates amounts of apoptosis inducing proteins—proteins that begin a ‘self-destruct’ process in cells. In included cases of mesothelioma in lab mice and humans, higher curcumin doses translated to higher chemotherapy treatment susceptibility.

National Center for Vermiculite and Asbestos-Related Cancers continues to research and study new information and treatments related to asbestos and mesothelioma. With ninety thousand annual, worldwide mesothelioma cases estimated for our near future, new treatment options could not come at a better time.

The 1st International Symposium on Lung-Sparing Therapies for Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma, in Santa Monica, CA, just concluded. Doctors, surgeons and medical experts from around the world gathered to listen and share information on mesothelioma treatments and procedures. Specifically, symposium agendas focused on mesothelioma treatments considered radical, and their benefit, or lack there of, for patients.

Mesothelioma is a rare cancer affecting people worldwide. The World Health Organization estimates twenty thousand people suffer from mesothelioma annually and expect that number to rise rapidly if its cause, asbestos exposure, is not stopped or at least greatly curbed.

Asbestos is a type 1 carcinogen known to cause mesothelioma and other severe diseases of the respiratory system.  Asbestos has been used heavily through the world as a construction agent due to its fire resistance and durability. Although relatively safe while contained in stable materials, toxic asbestos fibers can easily become airborne and inhaled, leading to mesothelioma development.

Pleural mesothelioma is a cancer of lung lining. It spreads an irregular pattern of tumors through the mesothelium, protective lining around the lungs, for decades without being detected; often twenty to fifty years will go by without the patient experiencing signs.  During its end stages, mesothelioma exhibits symptoms like that of pneumonia or bronchitis. Once a diagnosis is made, patient life expectancy ranges from six months to several years.

Mesothelioma treatments include surgeries, chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Radical treatment options often include the removal of an entire lung, all affected areas and lymph nodes, and often parts of the heart lining or diaphragm. This procedure, called an extrapleural pneumonectomy (EPP), has been used for decades and shows a 60% complication rate.

Symposium participants gathered and reviewed data from mesothelioma surgery cases in UK and US. According to event chairman, and director of UCLA Mesothelioma Research Program, Dr. Robert B. Cameron, following discussion of the data doctors present unanimously agreed lung removal is not the most beneficial procedure for mesothelioma patients. Practice of EPPs has already been discontinued in UK.

According to conclusions drawn at the symposium, Dr. Cameron said the “preferred surgical procedure” is a pleurectomy—removal of as many tumors and as much affected tissue as can be safely taken without removing any organs. Pleurectomies are often part of palliative patient care, focusing on slowing mesothelioma tumor spread and extending life expectancy.

Dr. Cameron concluded, “The information presented at this Symposium makes an incredibly strong statement that surgical removal of the lung for treatment of malignant pleural mesothelioma should no longer be performed anywhere in the world, just like it has been abandoned already in the U.K.”

A recent study by Austrian researchers is showing temsirolimus, a kinase inhibitor, may be beneficial as a treatment options for malignant mesothelioma. Temsirolimus is currently used in cases of kidney cancer to slow or stop tumor growth. The drug works by targeting mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR)—a vital protein that regulates cell growth—and blocking its abilities.

The Austrian research team believes temsirolimus may have the same effect on malignant mesothelioma cancer tumors as it does on kidney cancer. When tested, results showed a slowed growth process in mesothelioma tumors following treatment with temsirolimus. Study findings were published in the May issue of Journal of Thoracic Oncology.

Mesothelioma is currently claiming the lives of an estimated twenty thousand people worldwide each year. Mesothelioma is caused by toxic chemical asbestos and is characterized by a long latency period and short life expectancy following diagnosis. Asbestos continues to be used globally; the mesothelioma death rate is expected to rise until asbestos use is greatly curbed or stopped completely.

Professor Walter Berger, PhD, of the Institute of Cancer Research at the Medical University of Vienna says of the rare cancer, “Malignant mesothelioma is a severe human malignancy characterized by a very bad prognosis, with a mean patient survival time of less than one year. This unacceptable situation is mainly caused by late diagnosis combined with a distinct resistance to all forms of systemic therapy available so far. Mesothelioma is frequently caused by asbestos exposure and unfortunately — based on the long latency period — the incidence peak lies, despite the ban on asbestos, still ahead. Consequently, novel therapeutic options for this devastative disease are urgently needed.”

There is no known cure for mesothelioma. Mesothelioma treatments currently include surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Typically, a combination of these treatments is administered. However, the study showed that malignant mesothelioma cells resistant to commonly used chemotherapy drug cisplatin, will be hypersensitive against temsirolimus. Temsirolimus, therefore, is suggested as a second-line treatment for mesothelioma or a drug to be used in combination with other chemotherapies.

Professor Berger said, “In our preclinical study, published in the JTO, we were able to demonstrate that inhibition of the major oncogene mTOR is active against human mesothelioma especially after development of chemotherapy resistance both in vitro and in vivo. These results suggest the initiation of clinical trials involving mTOR inhibitors as a novel anti-mesothelioma strategy.”

In a study done by German researchers, results suggest an in depth inspection of lung tissue may aid in early detection of mesothelioma.

Mesothelioma is a rare type of cancer specific to lung lining and linings of other abdominal cavities. It develops over several decades and typically does not show signs or symptoms until twenty to fifty years after development begins. This makes mesothelioma difficult to diagnose. Symptoms mimic those of bronchitis and pneumonia when they do appear, further postponing a proper diagnosis.

Once a patient has been diagnosed with mesothelioma, life expectancy averages eighteen months, although the range may vary from six months to several years. Mesothelioma is an extremely aggressive cancer, heavily taxing patient energy levels and immune system. There are mesothelioma treatments available, the most common include a combination of surgeries, chemotherapy (often administered as a warm chemo-bath through the infected areas) and radiation therapy. Some new studies suggest that radiation therapy necessitating video assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) may not benefit mesothelioma patients as multiple entry wounds are used to locate infected areas which can cause further spreading of the mesothelioma tumors.

In Germany, mesothelioma is also called occupational disease 4105, a reminder of mesothelioma’s common cause, asbestos, which is often an on-the-job or work-related hazard. Asbestos is classified as a type 1 carcinogen by the World Health Organization. Present in countless building and structural components around the world, asbestos poses a threat to health and safety when its fibers and dust are released into the air. This can happen when asbestos containing materials are destroyed, damaged or broken down through simple wear and tear.

Despite its ability to cause mesothelioma, asbestosis and lung cancer, asbestos continues to be used globally, particularly in developing countries where safety precautions are not regulated and health care facilities necessary to diagnose or treat mesothelioma are non-existent.

German researchers who conducted this recent study note that the average latency period for mesothelioma has risen to 42.5 years. Meanwhile, the average age at diagnosis has also risen to 65.5. These numbers confirm that the reality of diagnosing mesothelioma is becoming more challenging; early detection tools are a must if this disease is to be fought. The research team suggest that an in depth look at lung tissue may be the best way.

Published in Recent Results in Cancer Research, the team said, “The decrease of median asbestos burden of the lung in mesothelioma patients results in disease manifestation at a higher age.  Lung dust analyses are a relevant method for the determination of causation in mesothelioma.”