New Opdivo/Yervoy Mesothelioma Clinical Trial Begins Soon

A novel clinical trial involving the immunotherapy combination of Opdivo and Yervoy will open soon in Chicago. The goal is to study the drugs’ efficacy when added to surgery for patients with peritoneal mesothelioma cancer. The single-center, phase II clinical trial follows a recent report detailing the impressive three-year effectiveness of the drug combination when used for unresectable pleural mesothelioma. Bristol Myers Squibb manufactures Opdivo and Yervoy, known generically as nivolumab and ipilimumab. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the combination for pleural mesothelioma in 2020, making it the first new systemic mesothelioma treatment in 15 years. Health organizations around the world, including those in Japan, China and the European Union, have issued similar first-line treatment approval. This latest clinical trial is expected to include close to 40 patients and last at least three years. It was approved in September and is scheduled to begin Jan. 1, at the University of Chicago Medicine Comprehensive Cancer Center. Participation, including pre-surgery treatment, post-surgery treatment and observation, will last at least 18 months. Researchers Expand Use of Immunotherapy An estimated 1,000 people are diagnosed annually in the U.S. with peritoneal mesothelioma, which develops in the thin layer of tissue lining the abdomen and often spreads throughout the abdominal cavity. Pleural mesothelioma grows in the tissue lining the lungs and c...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Source Type: news