Heated Intrathoracic Chemotherapy Could Extend Mesothelioma Survival

Patients with pleural mesothelioma undergoing aggressive surgery should consider combining it with controversial hyperthermic intrathoracic chemotherapy to extend survival, according to a recent study. Although the procedure, also known as HITHOC, has yet to be proven effective in a randomized clinical trial – and still is being debated by mesothelioma specialists – the report has elevated its status as a potentially useful adjuvant. “We concluded that the heated chemotherapy, delivered in a specialty center, has shown benefit,” researcher Alan G. Dawson told The Mesothelioma Center at Asbestos.com. “It should have a place in the multimodality approach to treatment.” Dawson studies malignant pleural mesothelioma with the Thoracic Oncology Research Group at the University of Leicester, United Kingdom. Annals of Surgical Oncology published this latest retrospective review in April, drawing from 598 patients in 15 different studies covering eight countries. Pleural Mesothelioma Survival Times Rise Significantly The results showed significant improvement for those undergoing the combination treatment as compared to those receiving the surgery and traditional systemic chemotherapy. “I was actually quite surprised at the findings,” Dawson said. “Going in, there was a lot of skepticism. Most thought there would be no difference in survival, or not much in the way of difference. The numbers, though, show that there is.” Overall surviv...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Tags: Pleural Treatment Source Type: news