Treatment & Doctors News

Patients diagnosed with the worst cases of pleural mesothelioma could benefit the most from the aggressive surgery they often are denied, according to one recent study. The findings have raised questions about the restrictive surgery selection process at many specialty centers handling mesothelioma, the rare and aggressive cancer caused by asbestos exposure. “In some cases,…

U.S. News & World Report ranked the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston the No. 1 cancer care hospital in America for the third consecutive year. MD Anderson has been a leader in the treatment of pleural mesothelioma, a contributing factor in maintaining its top billing on the rankings. Memorial Sloan Kettering in New York…

Thoracic surgeon Dr. Robert Cameron remembers well — it wasn’t that long ago — when a diagnosis of pleural mesothelioma cancer automatically came with a gloom-and-doom tone. Those days are gone. His 7th annual International Symposium on Mesothelioma at UCLA on Sept. 30 will accentuate the substantial recent progress. “Over the past five years, we’ve…

Surgeon Paul Sugarbaker at the Washington Cancer Institute has nearly doubled the five-year survival rate for patients with peritoneal mesothelioma by adding long-term regional chemotherapy to his already groundbreaking protocol. Sugarbaker, a pioneer in advancing peritoneal mesothelioma treatment for more than two decades, believes this latest development could have far-reaching implications. “This could be a…

The controversial extrapleural pneumonectomy (EPP) surgery should remain a viable option for select patients with malignant mesothelioma, despite a growing reluctance today among thoracic surgeons to recommend the procedure. When combined with intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), the EPP still can benefit some patients and improve survival times significantly, according to a recent study at…

Former thoracic surgeon Dr. Tom Treasure at University College London was never a believer in the aggressive extrapleural pneumonectomy (EPP) surgery still performed today for patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma. As a researcher now, he dismisses the potential benefit with even more conviction. “Doing the EPP can’t be justified anymore,” Treasure told Asbestos.com. “One more…

U.S. military veterans with malignant pleural mesothelioma can rely on the VA Boston Healthcare System’s national phone triage for improved access to specialized surgical advice and better treatment recommendations, according to a retrospective study. Thoracic surgeons Drs. Abraham Lebenthal and Jeff Siegert helped establish the open access telephone triage in 2011, shortening the average time…

Dr. Michael Shapiro has developed a program that should make breathing easier for a patient with malignant pleural mesothelioma. He equates his breathing program to teaching an elite athlete how to better utilize his lung capacity by using similar concepts that assist people struggling with serious respiratory issues in hospice care. “We’re not reinventing the…

Dr. Pietro Bertino can envision a time when mesothelioma cancer no longer exists. He can see it through the work he does every day. Bertino is an assistant researcher in the Cell and Molecular Biology Department at the John A. Burns School of Medicine at the University of Hawaii. The U.S. Department of Defense awarded…

Dr. Ka-Kit Hui is no expert on mesothelioma cancer, but he helps mesothelioma patients live longer and better lives every day. Committed to teaching the benefits of integrative medicine, Hui’s vision blends the best of traditional Chinese and conventional Western medicines, skillfully bridging the gap between the two. He launched the UCLA Center for East-West…