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Category: Mesothelioma

FDA Lung Cancer Drug

Mesothelioma Patients May Have Another Treatment Option With FDA Expanded-Use Approval of Lung Cancer Drug

In September, MesotheliomaHelp reported that Italian researchers found the response to ceritinib (Zykadia), an anti-cancer drug, was nearly immediate in non-small cell lung cancer patients who were previously treated with chemotherapy and crizotinib (Xalkori). Now, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted approval for expanded use of the drug to include the first-line treatment of NSCLC patients with ALK-positive tumors, opening the door for another treatment option for mesothelioma patients.

Ceritinib, marketed as Zykadia by Novartis, is intended for the treatment of metastatic NSCLC in patients who express the abnormal anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) gene. Approximately 3%-5% of people with NSCLC may test positive for the ALK fusion gene. There is a potential that the marker is also present in certain pleural mesothelioma cases making it a new treatment option for the cancer.

In a May 26 press release from Novartis, the company reports that of the 376 patients in the study, those receiving Zykadia as first-line treatment realized a 16.6 month progression-free survival versus 8.1 months in patients treated with pemetrexed-platinum chemotherapy first-line regimen.

“Today’s approval represents the next step in the development of Zykadia as a treatment option for ALK-positive metastatic NSCLC, bringing this important medication to a patient population where a need still exists,” said Bruno Strigini, CEO, Novartis Oncology.

Pleural mesothelioma patients and oncologists keep a close eye on research and breakthroughs that impact NSCLC patients. Although the two cancers have some differences, including the structure of the tumors, patients often follow a similar treatment protocol.

“At Novartis, we are tireless in our pursuit of developing novel medicines to treat lung cancer, and the first-line approval of Zykadia for ALK-positive metastatic NSCLC illustrates our commitment to cancer patients,” said Strigini.

Close to 3,000 patients are diagnosed with mesothelioma each year in the U.S. Although survival has improved in recent years, there is still no cure for the asbestos-caused cancer.

To find out if you may be a candidate for Zykadia, talk to your medical professional. Visit the Novartis website for more information.

Dad lost his battle to mesothelioma

ADAO Releases PSA to Draw Attention to the Sad Truth of Asbestos Exposure

With a mission to educate Americans, and the world, about the dangers of asbestos, the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization often has to present the cold, hard facts of the dangers of asbestos. In a public service announcement released last week, the ADAO does just that by depicting the story of a young girl whose father died from the toxic mineral.

In partnership with Chocolate Moose Media, ADAO developed a 30-second video, “Asbestos: The Killer You Can’t See,” with a goal to spread asbestos awareness to youth, families, and workers around the globe, according to a May 16 press release from the ADAO. The video, that uses hand-drawn animation, depicts a young girl who loses her father to an asbestos-related disease.

http://www.asbestosdiseaseawareness.org/archives/43675

“Our goal was to make an emotional connection to the danger of asbestos rather than overwhelm viewers with statistics,” says Linda Reinstein, mesothelioma widow and President/CEO and co-founder of ADAO. “The simple truth is asbestos kills and prevention remains the only cure.”

Exposure to asbestos is the direct cause of multiple diseases including mesothelioma, asbestos is and lung cancer. Exposure tends to occur among workers in the construction, electrical, plumbing, boiler, auto and maritime industries, particularly during the removal of asbestos materials due to renovation, repairs, or demolition, according to the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

When asbestos fibers become airborne they can easily be inhaled or ingested by workers or others nearby. The human body does not have the ability to break down these fibers, and the fibers can become lodged in the lining of the chest or abdomen, where, over the years, they begin to irritate the tissue, leading to mesothelioma.

The World Health Organization estimates that asbestos causes approximately half of all deaths from occupational cancer. In addition, 125 million people worldwide are exposed to asbestos in the workplace and nearly 107,000 die annually from asbestos exposure.

For this reason, the ADAO is reaching out across the globe and is offering the PSA in English and five other languages— Russian, Hindi, Portuguese, French, and Spanish. According to the press release, it is important to reach people in nations that continue to mine, use, and export asbestos.

Approximately 3,000 Americans die from mesothelioma each year. There is no cure for the cancer, and the only way to prevent it is to avoid exposure to asbestos.

“People are often unaware of the dangers posed by certain substances,” says Firdaus Kharas, founder of Chocolate Moose Media. “The lack of information can lead to deadly consequences. In this compelling hand-drawn video we warn about asbestos.”

Do your part to help ADAO get the word out about the dangers of asbestos. Share the video through your social media accounts.

Watch the PSA Video Here

About the ADAO

The Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) was founded by Linda Reinstein and Doug Larkin in 2004 and headquartered in Redondo Beach, California. ADAO is the largest independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit in the U.S. dedicated to preventing asbestos exposure, eliminating asbestos-related diseases, and protecting asbestos victims’ civil rights through education, advocacy, and community initiatives.

To find out more about ADAO visit its website at http://www.asbestosdiseaseawareness.org.

Mavis Nye Foundation - Fund Research for Mesothelioma

Mavis Nye Takes Patient Empowerment to a New Level, Starts Foundation to Fund Mesothelioma Research

It has been nearly one year since Mavis Nye completed a life-saving clinical trial at the Royal Marsden in England. The 75-year-old British woman who has battled mesothelioma for the last eight years went from a frightened, sick patient lost in a medical maze, to the first UK patient to claim remission from the cancer.

Mavis fought nearly every step of the way to ensure that she got the right care at the right time that would help keep the cancer at bay and keep her alive. She has proven that a mesothelioma patient can regain her health and her life by taking control of her own care, and she showed that an empowered patient has the best chance at survival.

Throughout her fight, though, Mavis never gave up on her fellow mesothelioma warriors as she battled for care for them as well. She plans on continuing that fight for others as she takes the helm at the Mavis Nye Foundation (MNF).

“I will be leaving a wonderful legacy that was always a dream of mine to raise money for research so that I pay back for such wonderful treatment that has kept me alive!” Mavis told Mesothelioma Help.

Mavis worked with a variety of people, including Trevor Sterling, Partner for Medical Relations at Moore Blatch Solicitors of London, and one of the UK’s leading major trauma lawyers, to get the foundation off the ground.

On April 27, Sterling made the following announcement on Facebook:

“A couple of years ago I read about a wonderful lady who had miraculously won her fight against Mesothelioma (an aggressive terminal cancer). She was given 3 months to live yet 8 years on she has become the most prolific asbestos campaigner. So inspired I went to meet her at the Marsden – she and her husband Ray are the most incredible people. They deserve a legacy so I am so thrilled that we have this week established the Mavis Nye Foundation.”

The MNF gives Mavis a forum to continue all of the advocacy and education work she has been doing since diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma in 2009. Mavis, who received the prestigious British Citizen Award in the category of “Service to Healthcare” in January 2016, can now give back to the community that has cheered her on throughout her highs and lows.

“Mavis has turned her battle with mesothelioma into something positive, and is making her voice heard to educate people about this illness,” said Angela Caulfield in her nomination of Mavis to the British Citizen Award.

Mavis Nye, BCAh, now proudly adds President, Mavis Nye Foundation to her signature block. Ray Nye, Mavis’s husband who has been by her side for 57 years and has been her rock during her battle with mesothelioma, will take a place on the MNF as Vice Chairman and Trustee.

“I want people to see that you can live with a terminal illness and fight, but at the same time educate people about asbestos and the disease it causes,” said Mavis.

The Mavis Nye Foundation Supports Patients, Research and the Medical Community

Mavis has always been thankful for the medical care she received, and she credits every one of the medical team members she encountered for keeping her alive far beyond her expectations. But, she also realizes that not all patients have access to such good care.

In June 2016, Mavis completed the MK3475-28 two-year clinical trial at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London where she received the immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab, known as Keytruda in the U.S. For Mavis, the results gave her a new life, and, according to a March 10, 2017 article in The Lancet, the drug is a suitable treatment option for patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma offering a “substantial duration of response.”

“All I can say is that at The Marsden, and Dean Fennel [visiting Senior Lecturer in medical oncology at Bart’s and Cancer Research UK Clinician], they all call me the star of the immunotherapy. Jeremy Steel [Co-Director of Bart’s Mesothelioma Research] in a speech recently said that they look at my case to prove that immunotherapy can work,” said Mavis.

It is this kind of response that has Mavis enthused about “funding more trials,” championing research and encouraging young college students to take on a career in the medical profession with an eye towards caring for mesothelioma patients.

As president and founder of the foundation, Mavis will guide the organization to focus on three critical areas of mesothelioma: the patient, research, and the medical staff.

The MNF will offer the following support:

  • Financial support to UK patients diagnosed with mesothelioma or other asbestos-related diseases requiring assistance to access medical treatment, in particular, experimental medical treatment.
  • Grants for the advancement of laboratory and clinical research in the UK for the treatment of mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases.
  • Assist in the treatment and care of persons suffering from mesothelioma by awarding scholarships or grants for attendance at British higher education institutions for health professionals in financial need who will focus on mesothelioma nursing in the UK.

“I have so many people contacting me about the Mavis Nye Foundation it’s just amazing how it has been accepted by others,” said Mavis. “Charities,  support groups, and everyone is congratulating me.”

Many factors can influence a patient’s survival, but being empowered to find the right medical care and to proactively manage the mesothelioma is the strongest weapon in fighting the disease and improving the patient’s outcome. Mavis is living proof of that, and she is not planning on giving up on herself, or others, anytime soon.

“I’m 75 now and proud to have lived this long  and I never thought 8 years ago I would,” said Mavis. “My next target is our 60th wedding anniversary in 3 years time –I want to make that.”

Work is ongoing to get the MNF website established and ready to accept donations. If you would like to make a donation to the Mavis Nye Foundation now, contact Mavis at [email protected].

Read more about Mavis and Ray’s Journey on MesotheliomaHelp:

Follow Mavis and Ray through the following links:

  • A Diary Of A Mesowarrior Living With Mesothelioma
    https://rayandmave.wordpress.com/2015/11/17/a-diary-of-a-mesowarrior-living-with-mesothelioma-scan-results-have-really-shocked/
  • Onestop Mesothelioma
    http://onestopmesothelioma.co.uk/index.html

Mavis donates all proceeds of her books to Mesothelioma UK to help raise funds for mesothelioma research. Order her books at Mavis and Ray’s Bookstore.

Sources :

  • Mesothelioma UK
    http://www.mesothelioma.uk.com/
  • Mavis and Ray’s Bookstore
    http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/nyeray7070
  • British Citizen Award
    http://britishcitizenawards.co.uk/mavis-nye/
Blood Test for Mesothelioma Treatment

Blood Test May Lead to Faster Time to Treatment for Mesothelioma Patients

MesotheliomaHelp has reported various times on the development of blood tests for diagnosing and assessing the progress of mesothelioma and other cancers. The tests are favored over traditional tissue biopsies due to the quick results and for being non-invasive. Now, researchers report they are developing a blood test that can identify genetic mutations in non-small cell lung cancer patients and return the results within three days.

A team of researchers from Biodesix, Inc., a U.S. company that discovers and commercializes cancer diagnostic tests, reports that through the use of Droplet Digital PCR (ddPCR), a highly sensitive gene-mutation detection method, they developed a blood-based test that can accurately identify several of the most common genetic mutations in lung cancer patients. In fact, they “generated test results successfully for 98% of tests submitted,” with 94 percent of the results available within 72 hours, according to an April 5 article on the Biodesix website.
http://www.biodesix.com/utility-of-a-targeted-nsclc-genomic-test-for-cfdna-variants-in-the-community-setting/

“Time to treatment can have significant impact on progression of cancer and treatment decisions rely heavily upon genomic and proteomic testing,” noted the researchers. “Results from tissue-based testing can take weeks to obtain and can delay time to treatment.”

Find out about other blood test breakthroughs here and here.
http://www.asbestosdiseaseawareness.org/

Due to the aggressive nature of both lung cancer and mesothelioma, an asbestos-caused cancer, when a patient is diagnosed with either of these cancers treatment should begin as soon as possible in order to quickly fight back the disease. However, according to the Biodesix researchers, led by Gary A. Pestano, Ph.D., oncologists are often delayed in beginning a patient’s therapy while awaiting results from genetic testing so they can offer personalized treatment. Test results can take weeks to be returned and by that time, oncologists and the patients may determine any generic treatment is better than a delayed, targeted therapy.

Although mesothelioma and lung cancers present with different tumor structures – mesothelioma is a spider-web-like weave of tumors on the lining of the lungs, whereas lung cancer is a single mass – the treatment protocol for the two is similar. Treating the cancer patients based on their genetic makeup, called targeted or personalized therapy, increases the chance of success. The Biodesix blood test focuses on identifying the EGFR, ALK and KRAS mutations in NSCLC patients. All three of these biomarkers have been the target of researchers hoping to develop new, more effective therapies for the cancers, and the presence of these biomarkers in a patient can point to a specific anti-cancer therapy.

In the study, the researchers analyzed over 1,600 blood samples from NSCLC patients, according to an April 19 article in Medical News Today. The results identified the mutations as follows: EGFR mutations sensitive to tyrosine kinase inhibitors in 10.5 percent of samples; 18.8 percent of samples had EGFR mutations resistant to tyrosine kinase inhibitors; KRAS gene mutations in 13.2 percent of samples; and two percent of samples with the EML4-ALK gene.

“We have developed rapid, highly robust, and sensitive blood-based assays to expedite time to treatment and expand the laboratory testing options for patients with NSCLC,” the team reported.

Pleural mesothelioma is a cancer of the lining of the lungs caused by past asbestos exposure. The terminal cancer is diagnosed in close to 3,000 Americans each year.

Read the full study in the May issue of The Journal of Molecular Diagnostics.
http://jmd.amjpathol.org/article/S1525-1578(17)30094-6/fulltext

Qualcomm Tricorder XPRIZE competition

Contest Could Bring Handheld Medical Tool to Mesothelioma Patients

One of the props used by Dr. McCoy, of the iconic 1960s television series Star Trek, was the Tricorder. With a point, swipe, and beep, the doctor could examine and diagnose the USS Enterprise’s crew members. Now, thanks to a contest, this science fiction device may soon become a reality bringing “healthcare to the palm of your hand,” and helping mesothelioma patients avoid some of their countless medical appointments.

The Qualcomm Foundation, along with the world’s leading visionaries, hold a three-day summit each year to brainstorm ideas to help mitigate some of the challenges facing the world. The goal is to create an incentivized global competition that could lead to a solution to the problem. In 2012, the summit attendees focused on healthcare.

With all the technological advances, the team thought, it is inconceivable that an individual has to physically go to a healthcare facility, clinic, or doctor for a diagnosis of any condition. They felt this model of health care has led to bottlenecks to access of care, backlogs in laboratories, and a rise in healthcare costs. The visionaries agreed that a medical device, for consumers, could be designed to address this problem. The Qualcomm Tricorder XPRIZE competition, with a total prize package of $10 million, was conceived to spur the creation of Dr. McCoy’s Tricorder.

U.S. Team Takes Top Prize

On April 12, 2017, the U.S. team, Final Frontier Medical Devices, based in Pennsylvania, was announced the winner of the nearly five-year competition netting them $2.6 million to help bring the prototype to reality. Led by two brothers, Dr. Basil Harris, an emergency medicine physician, and George Harris, a network engineer, the team created DxtER.

The second place winner, Dynamical Biomarkers Group of Taiwan, received $1 million to help bring their device to fruition.

“It is very exciting that our vision of mobile, personalized patient-centric healthcare is getting closer to becoming a reality thanks to the great work of the Qualcomm Tricorder XPRIZE teams,” said Dr. Paul E. Jacobs, executive chairman of Qualcomm Incorporated, in an April 13 press release announcing the winner. “Creating technology breakthroughs in an industry as complex as healthcare is quite a milestone, and what these teams accomplished is a great stepping stone to making mobile healthcare a viable option across the world.”

The field began with 312 teams from 38 countries all working to create a Tricorder prototype.  During the multi-year competition the field was narrowed to 29 teams from nine countries, and finally to two finalists from two countries. The two final teams, representing the U.S. and Taiwan, were chosen in December 2016.

Five-Pound Device Houses Complex Functionality

“Our device is smart and simple, giving people the help and answers they need when they need this input the most,” said Dr. Basil Harris, founder of  Basil Leaf Technologies, in a press release announcing his team’s success.

The final product had to adhere to strict requirements such as allowing an individual to determine if and what care is required without leaving home; it should weigh no more than five pounds; it must collect, store, and share vital health data via the internet; and cause no harm to the consumer either by thermal or electrical energy, needles, lancets, or infections.

Expert Insight

Dr. Basil Harris

“There is nothing like it in existence, and we believe this technology will change the face of health care.”

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In order to diagnose patient conditions, the device must be capable of collecting key health metrics like blood pressure, respiratory rates, and temperature over time and in various health states. The volume of data accumulated over time will allow the device to determine the consumers health conditions without expensive or invasive laboratory tests.

The winning prototype was to capture five real-time health vital signs, blood pressure, heart rate, oxygen saturation, respiratory rate, and temperature and identify 10 health conditions. The health conditions include: anemia, A-fib, COPD, diabetes, leukocytosis, pneumonia, otitis media, sleep apnea, urinary tract infection, and shingles. It must also be able to determine the absence of any condition allowing the patient to avoid unnecessary medications.

DxtER, the winning tool, is capable of diagnosing 34 health conditions.

Tricorder Benefits for Mesothelioma Patients

For mesothelioma patients and their caregivers, being able to determine, from the comfort of their home, what and if medical care is required, has significant benefits. Early detection of pneumonia, for example, can mean the difference between treatment at home and complications requiring hospitalization.

Mesothelioma, a rare cancer causally linked to asbestos exposure, is typically diagnosed in patients over the age of 65. At that age, many patients may have unrecognized medical problems that also need to be addressed. However, with the toll mesothelioma takes on a patient, symptoms that may mean a heart condition or diabetes often go ignored simply because of the burden of another round of doctors’ appointments and tests.

With the possibility of having their own diagnostic device at home that can collect their health data, assess the illness, and determine the appropriate course of action, whether that requires medical intervention or not, mesothelioma patients will feel more empowered, less stressed and may realize a better quality of life.

The device “gives users access to continuous, reliable health data – the information patients and providers need to more effectively manage chronic health conditions, such as diabetes and congestive heart failure,” according to Basil Leaf’s website.

With the advancements in mesothelioma care bringing the cancer closer to being a chronic disease, this device can allow patients to focus more on their lives and less on their illness.

The Qualcomm Foundation, and other strategic partners, are committed to seeing the Tricorder competition bring marketable products into the hands of consumers, and they have pledged millions of dollars in initiatives to support the teams.

To find out more about this exciting project visit the Qualcomm Tricorder XPRIZE website.

Photo Credit: Qualcomm Tricorder XPRIZE

Sources:

  • Qualcomm Tricorder XPRIZE competition
    http://tricorder.xprize.org/
  • Basil Leaf’s website
    http://www.basilleaftech.com/dxter/
  • Basil Leaf Technologies
    http://www.basilleaftech.com/blog-1/
  • Dr. Paul E. Jacobs, executive chairman of Qualcomm Incorporated
    http://tricorder.xprize.org/press-release/family-led-team-takes-top-prize-qualcomm-tricorder-xprize-competition

Free Mesothelioma Patient & Treatment Guide

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It contains a wealth of information and resources to help you better understand the condition, choose (and afford) appropriate treatment, and exercise your legal right to compensation.

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