Mesothelioma Clinical Trial Opens with Optimism in South Florida

Dr. Chukwuemeka Ikpeazu at the Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center has brought hope — where once there was none — to patients in South Florida with unresectable pleural mesothelioma. Ikpeazu is the principal investigator in the multicenter phase II clinical trial involving the much-anticipated immunotherapy drug durvalumab. Pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca manufactures the drug under the brand name Imfinzi. “I am optimistic, very, very optimistic that this drug will be effective for these patients,” Ikpeazu told Asbestos.com. “All the data, all the earlier studies, are encouraging.” He recently enrolled his first mesothelioma patient in the trial and expects others to follow shortly. Durvalumab will be used as a first-line treatment in combination with standard-of-care chemotherapy for those who are not eligible for surgery. “For these patients with unresectable disease, it’s not a cure, but with this treatment, the goal is prolonging survival for as long as possible, while minimizing symptoms,” Ikpeazu said. “I really think it will help.” Durvalumab Boosts Immune System Durvalumab works by activating a patient’s immune system to attack tumor cells that overexpress PD-L1, a protein that is quite common with mesothelioma patients. The drug counteracts the protein. Durvalumab’s interaction with chemotherapy was positive in earlier trials with other cancers. “Immunotherapy, for the most part, is not cancer specific,” Ikpeazu said. “I am encourag...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Source Type: news