Recent News

Ph 2/3 Study in Subjects With MPM w/Low ASS 1 Expression to Assess ADI-PEG 20 With Pemetrexed and Cisplatin (ATOMIC)

November 30, 2016

Purpose:This is a study of ADI-PEG 20 (pegylated arginine deiminase), an arginine degrading enzyme versus placebo in patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma with low argininosuccinate synthetase 1 expression. Malignant pleural mesothelioma have been found to require arginine, an amino acid. Thus the hypothesis is that by restricting arginine with ADI-PEG 20, the malignant pleural mesothelioma cells will starve and die.

The First Case of Pulmonary Asbestosis

November 28, 2016

Asbestosis, a severe and life threatening disease, is directly linked to the inhalation of asbestos fibers. In asbestosis, these fibers make their way to one’s lungs and become embedded in…

Mithramycin for Lung, Esophagus, and Other Chest Cancers

November 16, 2016

Purpose: Mithramycin is a drug that was first tested as a cancer therapy in the 1960s. It acted against some forms of cancer, but was never accepted as a treatment. Research suggests that it may be useful against some cancers of the chest, such as lung and esophageal cancer or mesothelioma. Researchers want to see if mithramycin can be used to treat these types of cancer.

Objectives
To see if mithramycin is safe and effective against different chest cancers.

Design
Participants will be screened with a physical exam and medical history. Blood and urine samples will be collected. Imaging studies and tumor tissue samples will be used to monitor the cancer before treatment.

Participants will receive mithramycin every day for 7 days, followed by 7 days without treatment. Each
Treatment will be monitored with frequent blood tests and imaging studies.

Participants will continue to take the drug for as long as the side effects are not severe and the tumor responds to treatment.

Rapid Autopsy and Procurement of Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Tissue

November 10, 2016

Purpose: People with lung cancers unfortunately commonly succumb to their disease. Some agree to donate their bodies to cancer research that may help the medical community better understand these diseases. Studies of lung cancer tumor tissue obtained soon after death may be used to answer questions about the origins, progression, and treatment of lung cancer. Researchers want to conduct a study that involves planned collection of lung cancer tumor tissue shortly after death. To do so, they will arrange to provide inpatient hospice care for people with non-small cell lung cancer.

Ptac2S Potentially More Effective Than Cisplatin When Fighting Mesothelioma

November 9, 2016

Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma (MPM) is a rare, aggressive asbestos –related cancer that has a poor survival rate due to the fact that the cancer is hard to detect early, and…

MEDI4736 Or MEDI4736 + Tremelimumab In Surgically Resectable Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma

November 2, 2016

PurposeThe objective of this study is to determine whether MEDI4736 or combination therapy with MEDI4736 + tremelimumab are associated with favorable alterations of the intratumoral immunologic environment in subjects undergoing resectional surgery for Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma MPM.

Intrapleural Cryotherapy for Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma

October 26, 2016

Purpose: an neoadjuvant intrapleural cryotherapy be safely performed in patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma and will it trigger substantial systemic and local pro-inflammatory changes, resulting in the induction of anti-tumor immunity?

Properties in Red Wine Could Help Fight Mesothelioma

October 25, 2016

Combining different types of treatment when it comes to treating mesothelioma is common because of how aggressive the cancer can be. While some treatments do prove to be effective, the…

Staging Procedures to Diagnose Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma

October 24, 2016

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the accuracy of participants imaging versus staging procedures. The investigators will consent subjects that are scheduled to undergo staging procedures to diagnose malignant pleural mesothelioma (including pleuroscopy, bronchoscopy, endobronchial ultrasound and laparoscopy) as part of their standard of care.

The Introduction of the Alan Reinstein Ban Asbestos Now Act of 2016, S.3427

October 19, 2016

The Alan Reinstein Ban Asbestos Now Act of 2016 S.3427 was introduced to the Senate on September 28, 2016. Supported by Senator Barbara Boxer, this bill was read and referred…