Clapper, Patti, Schweizer and Mason

Treating mesothelioma and other forms of non-small cell lung cancers has always been extremely difficult.  In the case of mesothelioma patients, doctors are excited when they can provide treatments that extend a patient’s lifespan by months.  Mesothelioma is an extremely aggressive form of cancer that’s caused by asbestos fibers invading the soft tissues of the body.  While mesothelioma begins as a localized cancer, it can metastasize and travel to various parts of the body.  Until now, the most common forms of treatment for the disease have been relatively unsuccessful when compared to their effect on other forms of cancer.

That’s why new research from the Department of Medicine at the Medical University of Vienna is so exciting.  Scientists have discovered that key biomarkers may enable them to pick specific treatments to which certain cancer patients will better respond. This would eliminate wasted time and trial-and-error treatment – time is an invaluable thing as mesothelioma typically progresses extremely fast after diagnosis. 

Specifically, the research examined patients who underwent adjuvant chemotherapy.  It was found that such therapy increases the lifespan on average of 5%, however, scientists also discovered that certain patients responded much better than others.  Indeed, patients undergoing cisplatin-based chemotherapy showed the best results out of all the cases studied for this survey. 

By examining the biomarkers of these patients (specifically ERCC1, BRCA1, EGFR, and specific gene sequences) doctors hope that they can come up with predictive tests they can administer before proceeding with adjuvant chemotherapy to predict whether or not the therapy will be beneficial. 

Currently, the average lifespan of a mesothelioma patient after diagnosis is 18 months, with some forms of the disease lowering that figure to as little as 9 months.  With proper and aggressive treatment some patients have lived past the five year mark but the disease remains incurable.  The main goal of treatment is to prolong the patient’s lifespan while increasing their quality of life in the hopes that a better treatment may be found in time.

Sadly, mesothelioma, unlike many other forms of cancer, is completely preventable.  Until recently, the majority of new mesothelioma cases in the United States came from a population that were exposed to asbestos over the course of their day to day jobs.  However, there has been a significant shift in the affected population.  Mesothelioma is now striking younger individuals who are dealing with the leftover asbestos products that this original generation of patients helped to create and install.   

This new Austrian research suggests that in addition to predetermining which treatments may or may not work, these tests could allow for the integration of molecular-targeted therapies, including genetically modified bacteria and the lab augmented immune cells.  The scientists involved strongly urge that the importance of biomarkers be investigated further.