EPP Surgery Still Plays Important Role in Mesothelioma Treatment

The much-debated and extremely aggressive extrapleural pneumonectomy (EPP) surgery still should play a prominent role in the management of mesothelioma, according to a recent U.K. study. The study reopened the simmering controversy over the value of the EPP by contradicting the conclusions of previous research that prompted some specialists to stop doing the surgery and others to dramatically reduce the number of procedures. The EPP involves the removal of an entire lung, the lining surrounding the lung and heart, along with major parts of the diaphragm — all in a curative attempt to remove as much cancer as possible. Critics of the EPP have argued the risks are not worth the rewards, and that the disease can be better managed in less aggressive ways. They point to the much-discussed Mesothelioma and Radical Surgery (MARS) trial completed in 2011, which cited 112 patients from 12 different hospitals throughout the U.K. The MARS conclusion was that benefits of the EPP were negligible, while quality of life was diminished. "One more of those surgeries would be one too many," surgeon and researcher Tom Treasure, University College of London, told Asbestos.com shortly after the MARS trial. "That surgery can be stopped now without a loss." Since the MARS trial, very few EPP surgeries have been done in the U.K. They are done more often in the U.S., although specialists are being much more selective with their surgical candidates. Some Lobbying Against EPP Robert Cameron, ...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Tags: Treatment & Doctors Source Type: news