(Part Three of our series on Mesothelioma Clinical Trials) Drug treatments that have been proven relatively safe in phase I and that have been shown to work against mesothelioma in phase II studies can advance through the third stage of testing. Phase III clinical trials for mesothelioma compare the safety and effectiveness of the new treatment against the current standard treatment. Phase III clinical trials typically enroll a large number of patients, at least several hundred. These studies are often done in many different locations
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Phase 0 mesothelioma clinical trials are designed to determine if and how a new mesothelioma drug might work in a human. Mesothelioma patients are currently not eligible to enroll in phase 0 studies, but they may be in the near future. Phase 0 studies for mesothelioma often use only a few small doses of the new drug in each patient. Researchers test whether the drug reaches the tumors, how the drug behaves in the body and how the cancer cells respond.
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Mesothelioma in any stage is challenging to treat because it tends to spread from the mesothelial lining along nearby surfaces, nerves, and blood vessels. This makes it very difficult, except in rare situations, to completely get rid of it with surgery and chemotherapy or radiation therapy. Additional treatment options are being developed over time through the clinical trial process. This article is the first of a three-part series for patients who may be interested in enrolling in a mesothelioma clinical trial.
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The International Mesothelioma Program at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston continue to make progress in malignant mesothelioma research. The scientists and doctors involved with the project are looking for information that will lead to better adjuvant therapies for the rare and deadly disease. Adjuvant therapies are treatments given to help boost the effectiveness of other treatments. In the case of malignant mesothelioma, the term “adjuvant therapies” typically refers to treatments that are administered to patients after they have had tumors surgically removed. In a recent study, scientists used mice to test potential adjuvant therapies. more...
It’s long been suspected that a person’s genetics play a role in determining susceptibility to the development of mesothelioma following exposure to asbestos fibers. The suspicion caused the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services National Institutes of Health (NIH) to fund research that would discover this genetic link. As of August, 2011, the specific gene mutation was not only found, but identified to also trigger other types of cancer. The culprit is the gene, BAP1. Not a very creative name, is it? Why not name genes after Greek gods and goddesses rather than assigning them boring codes made more...