An 86-year-old man presented with bilateral lower limb edema and was found to have hydropneumothorax on chest radiography. CT revealed a substantial pleural effusion and plaques. The patient had a history of working in a stone workshop, but the extent of asbestos exposure remained unknown. Thoracic drainage and subsequent thoracoscopic surgery … [Read more...]
Merck reports positive data from malignant pleural mesothelioma trial
Merck and the Canadian Cancer Trials Group (CCTG) have reported positive data from the Phase II/III CCTG IND.227/KEYNOTE-483 trial of Keytruda, along with chemotherapy, as first-line treatment for advanced malignant pleural mesothelioma patients. The open-label, randomised Phase II/III trial has been designed for assessing the combination of … [Read more...]
Incidence of Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma Decreased in the United States During 2004 to 2019
Despite a rising global incidence, long-term data reveal the U.S. [ incidence rate of pleural mesothelioma ] has decreased and overall survival for patients with mesothelioma is improving, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the European Lung Cancer Congress, held from March 29 to April 1 in Copenhagen, Denmark. Mohamed … [Read more...]
A Gelatinous Pleural Effusion as a Diagnostic Clue
Pleural effusion is a common presentation of several pathologies, and the determination of its cause is facilitated by macroscopic, biochemical, microbiological, and cellular analysis. A systematic approach to analyzing the fluid allows for a reduction in clinical diagnoses. Only a select number of diagnoses can be established definitively by … [Read more...]
Pleural Mesothelioma: A Rapid Evolution of an Indolent Disease
Mesothelioma is a rare and insidious neoplasm and is characterized by its highly malignant and aggressive nature. The most common etiology is asbestos exposure, but there are some reports without known asbestos exposure and other factors leading to malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM). Here, we present the case of a 58-year-old woman with … [Read more...]
Preoperative immunotherapy for mesothelioma shows favorable outcomes
In a study published recently in the journal Clinical Cancer Research, researchers at Baylor College of Medicine found that treating patients who have resectable malignant pleural mesothelioma, meaning that their tumor can be removed with surgery, with immunotherapy ahead of surgery resulted in favorable clinical outcomes. The study lays the … [Read more...]
Pembrolizumab/Lenvatinib Combo Shows Positive Clinical Activity in Recurrent Pleural Mesothelioma
The combination of pembrolizumab (Keytruda), and lenvatinib (Lenvima) demonstrated promising clinical activity with no unexpected toxicities in patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM), according to results from the PEMMELA study (NCT04287829) presented at the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer 2022 World … [Read more...]