Study Finds Mesothelioma Therapies Underutilized in Women

A multicenter research team of specialists has uncovered a surprising underutilization of treatments for pleural mesothelioma cancer in women. Clinical Lung Cancer recently published the findings, which showed a significant sex-based disparity in the receipt of care for women when compared with that of men. Women were 15% less likely to receive aggressive mesothelioma surgery that has proven its worth in extending lives for this cancer, which has no definitive cure. They also were 20% less likely to receive chemotherapy than were men. “This is concerning, absolutely,” Dr. Charles Simone, chief medical officer at the New York Proton Center and one of the researchers told The Mesothelioma Center at Asbestos.com. “We should be making sure that women are getting full access to the most advanced treatments, just as men are.” The study was the largest, most robust analysis ever on the topic using a national hospital-based registry that included more than 18,000 patients. It was taken from the National Cancer Database. Researchers were from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh, the MD Anderson Cancer Center at the University of Texas and the New York Proton Center. “A patterns-of-care assessment exposed concerning disparities in receipt of treatment, as females were less likely to receive chemotherapy and surgery, despite deriving great benefit from receipt of all therapies,” the authors wrote. “Suc...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Source Type: news