FDA Approves Opdivo, Yervoy Combination for Mesothelioma
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the immunotherapy combination of Opdivo and Yervoy for first-line treatment of unresectable malignant pleural mesothelioma.
It was the first new drug regimen approved for mesothelioma in 16 years and only the second systemic therapy ever.
The historic treatment approval for this cancer without a cure was the first since the FDA approved the chemotherapy combination of pemetrexed and cisplatin in 2004.
“This marks the beginning of a new era for mesothelioma,” Dr. Bernardo Goulart, medical oncologist at Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, told The Mesothelioma Center at Asbest...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - October 5, 2020 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Fran Mannino Source Type: news
FDA Approves Opdivo, Yervoy Combination for Mesothelioma
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the immunotherapy combination of Opdivo and Yervoy for first-line treatment of unresectable malignant pleural mesothelioma.
It was the first new drug regimen approved for mesothelioma in 16 years and only the second systemic therapy ever.
The historic treatment approval for this cancer without a cure was the first since the FDA approved the chemotherapy combination of pemetrexed and cisplatin in 2004.
“This marks the beginning of a new era for mesothelioma,” Dr. Bernardo Goulart, medical oncologist at Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, told The Mesothelioma Center at Asbest...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - October 5, 2020 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Fran Mannino Source Type: news
KCIC Report: Mesothelioma Lawsuits on the Rise in US
While the incidence of malignant mesothelioma in the United States continued its gradual decline, the tendency to sue for damages drastically increased in recent years, according to a KCIC study.
Lawsuits filed by those stricken with the deadly asbestos-related cancer increased 65.7% from 2007 to 2017. Meanwhile, the overall incidence rate of mesothelioma dropped 16.2% during the same period.
KCIC, a well-regarded consulting firm in Washington, D.C., that manages asbestos product liabilities, published the study of mesothelioma and asbestos litigation last week. Study author Megan Shockley, senior manager at KCIC, was unav...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - September 29, 2020 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Fran Mannino Source Type: news
Gene Therapy Clinical Trial for Mesothelioma Moving Forward
This study will compare the effectiveness of the drug against a control group receiving only the gemcitabine and celecoxib. Patients have a one-in-two chance of being randomly assigned to either the adenovirus treatment or the control group.
Adenovirus-delivered interferon Alpha-2b is designed as a second- or third-line treatment for patients who have failed in earlier regimens. Patients who previously had aggressive mesothelioma surgery but whose tumors have since progressed would be eligible to enroll.
Success at the phase III level would mark the culmination of 20 years of researching and fine tuning gene therapy for us...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - September 23, 2020 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Fran Mannino Source Type: news
Mesothelioma Trial to Test Cancer Vaccine with Immunotherapy
A research team at Oslo University Hospital in Norway has opened a mesothelioma clinical trial using the novel UV1 cancer vaccine alongside a promising immunotherapy combination.
UV1 is a peptide-based vaccine designed to induce a specific T-cell response and increase the effectiveness of the immunotherapy drugs.
This is the first time UV1 will be studied with mesothelioma cancer, but it already has shown safety and signs of efficacy when used on malignant melanoma, prostate cancer and lung cancer in studies worldwide.
It will be used with the immunotherapy combination of nivolumab and ipilimumab, also known by brand names...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - September 14, 2020 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Fran Mannino Source Type: news
Peer Review Finds EPA ’s Asbestos Risk Evaluation Flawed
The Science Advisory Committee on Chemicals found considerable failings and an underestimation of danger to the general public in a draft risk evaluation of asbestos submitted earlier this year by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
SACC, which serves as a scientific, peer-review mechanism for the EPA, released its recommendations last week in the ongoing governmental reevaluation of asbestos.
This is the latest step in the amended Toxic Substances Control Act that requires the EPA to conduct evaluations on specific chemicals to determine whether they present unreasonable risk under conditions of use.
The committee w...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - September 2, 2020 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Fran Mannino Source Type: news
Georgia-Pacific Pledges $1B to Bestwall Asbestos Trust Fund
Georgia-Pacific has pledged $1 billion to fund an asbestos trust for bankrupt affiliate Bestwall LLC, clearing the path to a settlement of longstanding liability claims involving mesothelioma cancer.
Bloomberg Law reported earlier this month that Georgia-Pacific made the financial commitment to advance a consensual resolution in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of North Carolina.
Bestwall is a wallboard and joint compound product manufacturer that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2017 with more than 62,000 pending claims involving asbestos.
It was known earlier as Bestwall Gypsum Company, and was purcha...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - August 25, 2020 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Fran Mannino Source Type: news
New Lung Cancer Trial Could Benefit Mesothelioma Patients
Pharmaceutical giant Merck has teamed up with Novocure to test its cornerstone immunotherapy, pembrolizumab (Keytruda), alongside Tumor Treating Fields.
The new phase II clinical research trial is focusing on non-small cell lung cancer and will enroll approximately 66 patients across the U.S.
Keytruda, Merck’s anti-PD-1 therapy, works as a checkpoint inhibitor and allows the immune system to identify and attack cancer cells hiding within the PD-1 pathway. The FDA approved Keytruda for mesothelioma as the first immunotherapy treatment for the disease in 2020.
Novocure, a global oncology company, has been developing Tum...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - August 19, 2020 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Fran Mannino Source Type: news
Immunotherapy Combination Extends Mesothelioma Survival
Standard-of-care treatment for unresectable pleural mesothelioma cancer could be changing soon, sparked by a recently completed international study of a novel immunotherapy combination.
Patients in the randomized mesothelioma clinical trial who were treated with ipilimumab (Yervoy) and nivolumab (Opdivo) had a median overall survival of 18.1 months, compared to 14.1 months for those receiving chemotherapy.
The results of the mesothelioma trial, which was sponsored by Bristol Myers Squibb, were presented at the recent World Conference on Lung Cancer virtual meeting.
Authors of the study said it was the first time an immuno...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - August 11, 2020 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Fran Mannino Source Type: news
Mesothelioma Clinical Trials Resume After COVID-19 Disruption
When the COVID-19 pandemic struck earlier this year, clinical trials at medical centers around the world slowed enrollment or placed trial activities on hold.
As businesses begin to reopen in the United States, more treatment centers are resuming mesothelioma study activities and ramping up enrollment.
Clinical research trials offer patients access to experimental mesothelioma treatments that haven’t yet been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. These treatments may provide higher chances of survival than the current standard of care.
“So far, every patient I have seen during the COVID-19 pandemic has ...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - August 10, 2020 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Fran Mannino Source Type: news
Mesothelioma T-Cell Therapy Shows Early Effectiveness in Trial
A mesothelioma clinical trial involving genetically modified T cells has opened to considerable acclaim, shrinking tumors in the first five patients who were treated.
The phase I portion of the clinical trial is designed to define the safety profile and optimal dosage level of TC-210, a novel immunotherapy targeting mesothelin, a cell-surface protein often overexpressed in several cancers.
While T cell modifications in the laboratory are proving safe and well tolerated, the initial signs of consistent efficacy became an early bonus in phase I.
Four of the patients treated had mesothelioma. The fifth had ovarian cancer. All...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - August 4, 2020 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Fran Mannino Source Type: news
Mesothelioma Specialty Centers Rank on 2020 Best Hospitals List
For the sixth consecutive year, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston was named the top Adult Cancer Hospital in America by U.S. News & World Report.
Several of the top-tier cancer centers on the list have specialty programs for mesothelioma that contributed to their high ranking.
The 2020-21 Best Hospitals for Cancer rankings, announced this week, are part of a broader Best Hospitals Honor Roll done annually by U.S. News & World Report.
Top five cancer center rankings also included Memorial Sloan Kettering in New York City; Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota; Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - July 29, 2020 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Fran Mannino Source Type: news
MD Anderson Leads List of Top-Tier Cancer Hospitals
For the sixth consecutive year, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston was named the top Adult Cancer Hospital in America by U.S. News & World Report.
Several of the top-tier cancer centers on the list have specialty programs for mesothelioma that contributed to their high ranking.
The 2020-21 Best Hospitals for Cancer rankings, announced this week, are part of a broader Best Hospitals Honor Roll done annually by U.S. News & World Report.
Top five cancer center rankings also included Memorial Sloan Kettering in New York City; Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota; Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - July 29, 2020 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Fran Mannino Source Type: news
Study Shows Peritoneal Mesothelioma Surgery Underutilized
The continued underutilization of aggressive surgery for peritoneal mesothelioma is shortening survival time dramatically for patients who could qualify for, and benefit from, the highly effective procedure.
Only a third of those diagnosed with peritoneal mesothelioma are undergoing potentially curative cytoreductive mesothelioma surgery, according to a comprehensive study of the National Cancer Database by researchers at Inova Fairfax Medical Center in Virginia.
Annals of Surgical Oncology published the mesothelioma study earlier this year.
“Patients who have the surgery perform much better than those who do not. Yet mo...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - July 28, 2020 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Fran Mannino Source Type: news
Merck, Targovax Team Up for New Mesothelioma Clinical Trial
Standard-of-care treatment for malignant mesothelioma could change significantly, depending upon the results of an upcoming clinical trial of two immunotherapy agents used in combination with chemotherapy.
The mesothelioma clinical trial will involve pembrolizumab, also known by the brand name Keytruda, and its synergy with ONCOS-102, a lesser-known, genetically modified adenovirus.
Individually, both have shown modest efficacy for mesothelioma patients when used with chemotherapy. Together, there is potential for a much greater impact in significantly extending patient survival.
The clinical trial is a partnership between...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - July 22, 2020 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Fran Mannino Source Type: news