Scientists have welcomed a “truly wonderful” new drug for a hard-to-treat and aggressive form of cancer.
Researchers led by a team at Queen Mary University of London said their new treatment “quadrupled” three-year survival rates and increased average survival by 1.6 months.
Academics said that the new drug, which works by cutting off the tumour’s food supply, is the first of its type for mesothelioma in 20 years.
It is usually linked to asbestos exposure.
If you or someone you know has been diagnosed with Mesothelioma –
Call the Asbestos Legal Center – 1-800-970-DUST
Figures from Cancer Research UK suggest there are about 2,700 new cases of mesothelioma each year in the UK.
And every year there are almost 2,400 deaths – just two per cent of people are expected to survive for 10 years beyond their diagnosis.
The new study, led by Professor Peter Szlosarek at Queen Mary, saw all patients receive chemotherapy every three weeks for up to six cycles.
Half were also given injections of new drug, ADI-PEG20 (pegargiminase) while the other half received a placebo – also known as a dummy drug – for two years.
Some 249 patients with pleural mesothelioma – when the disease affects the lining of the lungs – were included in the final analysis. They had an average age of 70.
The ATOMIC-meso trial, which was sponsored by Polaris Pharmaceuticals, was conducted at 43 centres across five countries between 2017 and 2021.
Patients involved in the study were followed up for at least a year.
Those who received pegargiminase and chemotherapy survived for an average of 9.3 months, compared to 7.7 months for those who had the placebo and chemotherapy, according to a study published in the journal JAMA Oncology.
If you or someone you know has been diagnosed with Mesothelioma –
Call the Asbestos Legal Center – 1-800-970-DUST
MESOTHELIOMA SYMPTOMS
Symptoms of mesothelioma in the lining of the lungs include:
- chest pain
- shortness of breath
- fatigue (extreme tiredness)
- a high temperature and sweating, particularly at night
- a persistent cough
- loss of appetite and unexplained weight loss
- clubbed (swollen) fingertips
Symptoms of mesothelioma in the lining of the tummy include:
- stomach pain or swelling
- feeling or being sick
- loss of appetite and unexplained weight loss
- diarrhoea or constipation