New Mesothelioma Treatment Options

Clinical Trials for Cancer of the Pleural or Peritoneal Lining

Oct 1, 2009 Jamie McIntosh

Taking part in clinical treatment trials gives cancer patients a chance to improve the mesothelioma survival rate with angiogenesis inhibitors and other new drugs.

Malignant mesothelioma is a cancer that affects the lining of the chest or abdomen. Standard treatment options for mesothelioma patients include surgery, radiation, or chemotherapy, but these treatments often do not produce a cure in patients. For this reason, patients may ask their doctors about clinical trials testing new drugs and other treatments for mesothelioma.

Clinical trials are evaluating drugs that inhibit blood vessel formation in tumors, new chemotherapy drugs, and other novel approaches, sometimes in combination with standard treatment approaches. Every clinical trial has strict entry criteria that a patient must meet to ensure patient safety and valid study results, and referral into cancer studies is done by the patient’s physician. Studies may take place at the patient’s local clinic or at larger cancer research hospitals.

Vorinostat Chemotherapy Capsules

Researchers are investigating whether the chemotherapy drug vorinostat is more effective than a placebo for patients with advanced mesothelioma who have failed standard treatment. The manufacturer of vorinostat, Merck & Co., Inc, shares that this drug may work against cancer cells by disrupting the DNA structure of tumor cells, interrupting the cell growth cycle. Currently, vorinostat, trade name Zolinza, is used as a standard treatment against cutaneous T-cell lymphoma.

Avastin Angiogenesis Inhibitor

Avastin is an anti-angiogensis agent, which means the drug inhibits the formation of blood vessels that feed the tumor. Avastin is already a standard treatment for several cancers, including lung, colon, and breast cancers.

Doctors are exploring the effectiveness of carboplatin, Avastin, and Altima in patients newly diagnosed with malignant pleural mesothelioma. The standard treatment approach for newly diagnosed mesothelioma patients is a combination of the chemotherapy drugs cisplatin or carboplatin and Altima. Researchers will assess how the addition of the drug Avastin affects the mesothelioma survival rates.

Cell Growth Inhibitor CBP501

CBP501 is a new drug that works against cancer cells by stopping mitosis. Mitosis is the way cells divide to make new cells. Researchers are just beginning to study this drug in patients with advanced cancer, and they will attempt to learn how much of the CBP501 drug can be safely given to patients in combination with the standard chemotherapy drugs cisplatin and Altima.

Anti-Angiogenesis Drug Cediranib, or AZD2171

AZD2171 is an angiogenesis inhibitor drug that stops new blood vessels from forming in tumors by blocking VEGF signals, which is a chemical reaction at the cellular level that drives blood vessel formation. Only mesothelioma patients with tumors that can’t be surgically removed qualify for this research.

New Oral Chemotherapy Drug Milataxel

Milataxel is one of a class of chemotherapy drugs known as taxanes. Researchers believe this new taxane may be more useful against drug-resistant tumors than previously used taxane chemotherapy drugs. Milataxel, also called TL139, stops cancer cells from dividing and proliferating.

Source:

The National Cancer Institute

The copyright of the article New Mesothelioma Treatment Options in General Medicine is owned by Jamie McIntosh. Permission to republish New Mesothelioma Treatment Options in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

New Cancer Drugs May Improve Mesothelioma Survival