Clapper, Patti, Schweizer and Mason

The First International Symposium on Lung-Sparing Therapies for Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma will be held at the Sheraton Delfina Hotel in Santa Monica, California on May 21^st from 8 in the morning until 5 in the afternoon.  The symposium, sponsored in part by the UCLA Mesothelioma Research Program, is the first of its kind and was created to help educate doctors about the innovative treatments available to them in their fight against malignant pleural mesothelioma.

Mesothelioma is a type of cancer which attacks the soft membrane lining of the lungs, heart and abdomen.  Caused by asbestos exposure, malignant pleural mesothelioma (a non-small cell lung cancer) is one of the most aggressive and deadliest forms of the disease.  It strikes fewer than 3,000 people every year in the United States but for each and every one, it is fatal as there is no cure.

The disease typically goes unnoticed for decadess before a diagnosis is made.  In fact, the majority of pleural mesothelioma cases aren’t diagnosed until they are in either stage 3 or 4.  Typically, patients have less than 1 year to live after being diagnosed.

While the most common treatments for mesothelioma are traditional therapies used for all types of lung cancer (chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation therapy) there are several innovative new treatments that doctors can use to prolong lifespan, ease suffering, and give mesothelioma patients a better quality of life in their final days. 

The symposium will be led by Dr. Robert Cameron, MD, FACS, Director of the Mesothelioma Research Program at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and Chief of Thoracic Surgery at the West Los Angeles Veterans’ Administration Medical Center. 

Included in the scheduled discussions will be:

• Research concerning recent results from the Mesothelioma and Radical Surgery (MARS) Trial conducted in the U.K. presented by Doctors Tom Treasure and David A Waller.
• An explanation of Doctor Cameron’s own approach entitled Radical But Rational Lung-Sparing Surgery.
• Data concerning Percutaneous Adjuvant Cryo- and Radiofrequency Ablation presented by Fereidoun Abtin, MD.
• Additional presentations by experts in the fields of surgery, radiation, chemotherapy and pulmonary medicine.

While the symposium is primarily geared toward medical professionals seeking to enhance their ongoing learning, it is open to the public as well.  Anyone diagnosed with mesothelioma, and their family members, are also invited with a discounted entrance fee.

For more information about the symposium visit the UCLA Office of Continuing Medical Education website at http://www.cme.ucla.edu/courses.