Gemcitabine with or without ramucirumab as second-line treatment for malignant pleural mesothelioma (RAMES): a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 2 trial

The Lancet Oncology 2021 September 6 [Link] Carmine Pinto, Paolo Andrea Zucali, Maria Pagano, Federica Grosso, Giulia Pasello, Marina Chiara Garassino, Marcello Tiseo, Hector Soto Parra, Francesco Grossi, Federico Cappuzzo, Filippo de Marinis, Paolo Pedrazzoli, Maria Bonomi, Letizia Gianoncelli, Matteo Perrino, Armando Santoro, Francesca Zanelli, Candida Bonelli, Antonio Maconi, Stefano Frega, Erika Gervasi, Luca Boni,…

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Management of Advanced Pleural Mesothelioma-At the Crossroads

JCO Oncology Practice 2021 September 7 [Link] Anna K Nowak, Alannah Jackson, Calvin Sidhu Abstract The management of pleural mesothelioma has changed with the demonstration that first-line checkpoint blockade therapy improves survival. This review covers issues of relevance to the practicing medical oncologist, with an emphasis on the palliative setting and on new information. Until…

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Tumor Treating Fields (TTFields) downregulate the Fanconi Anemia-BRCA pathway and increase the efficacy of chemotherapy in malignant pleural mesothelioma preclinical models

Lung Cancer 2021 August 27 [Link] Helena Mumblat, Antonia Martinez-Conde, Ori Braten, Mijal Munster, Eyal Dor-On, Rosa S Schneiderman, Yaara Porat, Tali Voloshin, Shiri Davidi, Roni Blatt, Anna Shteingauz, Catherine Tempel-Brami, Einav Zeevi, Carolina Lajterer, Yuval Shmueli, Shiri Danilov, Adi Haber, Moshe Giladi, Uri Weinberg, Adrian Kinzel, Yoram Palti Abstract Objectives: Tumor Treating Fields (TTFields)…

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Neoadjuvant pemetrexed plus cisplatin followed by pleurectomy for malignant pleural mesothelioma

Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery 2021 July 17 [Link] Seiki Hasegawa, Kohei Yokoi, Morihito Okada, Fumihiro Tanaka, Mototsugu Shimokawa, Takashi Daimon, Takashi Nakano Abstract Purpose: Despite becoming the preferred surgical technique for malignant pleural mesothelioma, pleurectomy/decortication has received few prospective clinical trials. Therefore, the Japan Mesothelioma Interest Group conducted a prospective multi-institutional study to…

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Detection of circulating immunosuppressive cytokines in malignant pleural mesothelioma patients for prognostic stratification

Cytokine 2021 June 19 [Link] Loredana Urso, Micol Silic-Benussi, Alice Boscolo, Martina Lorenzi, Laura Bonanno, Francesca Lunardi, Valentina Guarneri, Fiorella Calabrese, Federico Rea, PierFranco Conte, Giulia Pasello Abstract Background: No data on circulating biomarkers for the prognostic stratification of Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma (MPM) patients are available. We prospectively explored the prognostic role of circulating monocyte…

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Immune Checkpoint Inhibition for Unresectable Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma

Drugs 2021 June [Link] Wanyuan Cui, Sanjay Popat Abstract Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) have shown important but variable efficacy in mesothelioma despite a lack of strong biological rationale. Initial trials assessed ICI monotherapy in patients with relapsed mesothelioma, with objective response rates (ORR) between 4.5 and 29%, median progression-free survival (PFS) between 2.5-6.2 months, and…

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A novel BH3-mimetic, AZD0466, targeting BCL-XL and BCL-2 is effective in pre-clinical models of malignant pleural mesothelioma

Cell Death Discovery 2021 May 28 [Link] Surein Arulananda, Megan O’Brien, Marco Evangelista, Laura J Jenkins, Ashleigh R Poh, Marzena Walkiewicz, Trishe Leong, John M Mariadason, Jonathan Cebon, Srividya B Balachander, Justin R Cidado, Erinna F Lee, Thomas John, Walter D Fairlie Abstract Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is an aggressive cancer with treatment limited to…

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Efficacy, Safety, and Cost-Minimization Analysis of Continuous Infusion of Low-Dose Gemcitabine Plus Cisplatin in Patients With Unresectable Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma

Frontiers in Oncology 2021 April 20 [Link] Oscar Arrieta, Wendy Muñoz-Montaño, Sae Muñiz-Hernández, Saul Campos, Rodrigo Catalán, Herman Soto-Molina, Silvia Guzmán Vázquez, Osvaldo Díaz-Álvarez, Victor Martínez-Pacheco, Jenny G Turcott, Maritza Ramos-Ramírez, Luis Cabrera-Miranda, Feliciano Barrón, Andrés F Cardona Abstract Background: Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is rare and aggressive neoplasia, with a poor prognosis; furthermore, the…

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Three Decades of Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma: An Academic Center Experience

Clinical Lung Cancer 2021 March 27 [Link] Abdullah Nasser, Andrew Baird, Mathieu D Saint-Pierre, Kayvan Amjadi, Scott Laurie, Paul Wheatley-Price Abstract Background: Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) remains a challenging disease to manage. In the past few decades, extrapleural pneumonectomy (EPP), pemetrexed-based chemotherapy, and indwelling pleural catheters were introduced to MPM care with variable levels of…

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