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Hum Pathol 2019 Feb 19. Epub 2019 Feb 19.

Department of Pathology, University of Utah, 1950 Circle of Hope, Salt Lake City, UT 84112; ARUP Laboratories, 500 Chipeta Way, Salt Lake City, UT, 84108.

Malignant mesothelioma (MM) is an aggressive neoplasm with poor prognosis. The Dako PD-L1 22C3 and 28-8 pharmDx assays are approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as companion and complementary diagnostics for the anti-PD-1 drugs pembrolizumab and nivolumab, respectively. Data from multiple clinical trials indicate that immunotherapy has anti-tumor activity in advanced malignant pleural (MPM) and peritoneal mesothelioma (MPeM). Read More

Curr Treat Options Oncol 2019 Feb 21;20(3):23. Epub 2019 Feb 21.

UOC di Oncologia Medica - Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore - Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli IRCCS, Largo Francesco Vito 1, 00168, Rome, Italy.

Opinion Statement: Unresectable or relapsed malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) has dismal prognosis. First-line combination therapy with pemetrexed and a platinum analog allows a modest survival benefit, while no clear therapeutic options exist for the second-line therapy. In this setting, pemetrexed seems to be the most active drug; however, the inclusion in front-line treatment limits its use in further lines. Read More

Clin Transl Oncol 2019 Feb 20. Epub 2019 Feb 20.

Department of Internal Medicine, Medical Oncology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, USA.

Introduction: Neurological immune-related adverse events are a rare but potentially deadly complication after immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) treatment. As multiple sclerosis (MS) is an immune-mediated disease, it is unknown how ICI treatment may affect outcomes.

Methods: We analyzed the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) database for pembrolizumab, atezolizumab, nivolumab, ipilimumab, avelumab, and durvalumab 2 years prior their FDA approval until December 31, 2017, to include all cases with confirmed diagnosis/relapse of MS. Read More

Support Care Cancer 2019 Feb 20. Epub 2019 Feb 20.

Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Hyogo College of Medicine, Nishinomiya, Japan.

Purpose: According to reports, patients with lung cancer have decreased pulmonary function and exercise capacity after surgery. However, to date, physical function and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) after surgery for malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) have not been evaluated in detail in the convalescent phase. This study aimed to assess physical function and HRQOL of MPM patients following pleurectomy/decortication (P/D) in the convalescent phase. Read More

J Clin Oncol 2019 Feb 20:JCO2018790543. Epub 2019 Feb 20.

14 Erasmus Medical College, Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Purpose: Inhibition of focal adhesion kinase has been shown to selectively kill mesothelioma cells that express low levels of moesin-ezrin-radixin-like protein (merlin). On this basis, we designed a randomized, phase II trial to investigate whether defactinib as maintenance therapy after standard first-line chemotherapy could improve progression-free survival (PFS) in patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM).

Methods: This global, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial was conducted in patients with advanced MPM and disease control after at least four cycles of first-line chemotherapy. Read More

Klin Lab Diagn 2018 ;63(12):768-772

Federal budgetary institution of science "Nizhny Novgorod research Institute of epidemiology and microbiology. Academician I.N. Blokhina Rospotrebnadzor", 603005, 603006, Nizhny Novgorod, Russia.

Cytological diagnosis by effusions is currently the only reliable method of morphological verification of the diagnosis, it has prognostic significance and determines the choice of treatment strategy. At the same time, the variability of normal mesothelial cells causes significant difficulties in its differential diagnosis with reactive mesothelium, malignant mesothelioma and cancer metastasis, which requires additional analytical methods. A retrospective study of cytological preparations for 2017 was conducted, as well as the effectiveness of the use of fluorescent immunocytochemistry (FITZ) on the test system "biochip" in combination with a traditional cytological study was evaluated. Read More

Lasers Surg Med 2019 Feb 19. Epub 2019 Feb 19.

Department of Thoracic Surgery, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois, Lausanne, Switzerland.

Vascular-targeted low-dose photodynamic therapy (L-PDT) was shown to improve chemotherapy distribution in malignant pleural tumors such as malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM). However, the mechanisms triggered by L-PDT on the tumor vasculature are still debated. In pericyte and endothelial cell co-cultures, we show that pericytes exhibit enhanced sensitivity towards L-PDT compared to endothelial cells, displaying actin stress fibers and cellular contraction via Rho/ROCK kinase signaling myosin light chain and focal adhesion kinase phosphorylation (MLC-P, FAK-P). Read More

Genome Med 2019 Feb 18;11(1). Epub 2019 Feb 18.

Vancouver Prostate Centre, 2660 Oak St, Vancouver, BC, V6H 3Z6, Canada.

Background: Malignant peritoneal mesothelioma (PeM) is a rare and fatal cancer that originates from the peritoneal lining of the abdomen. Standard treatment of PeM is limited to cytoreductive surgery and/or chemotherapy, and no effective targeted therapies for PeM exist. Some immune checkpoint inhibitor studies of mesothelioma have found positivity to be associated with a worse prognosis. Read More

J Hematol Oncol 2019 Feb 18;12(1):18. Epub 2019 Feb 18.

Key Laboratory of Regenerative Biology, South China Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, China.

Background: Gastric cancer (GC) is a common cancer in Asia and currently lacks a targeted therapy approach. Mesothelin (MSLN) has been reported to be expressed in GC tissue and could be targeted by chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells. Mesothelin targeting CAR-T has been reported in mesothelioma, lung cancer, breast cancer, and pancreas cancer. Read More

Nanotoxicology 2019 Feb 19:1-15. Epub 2019 Feb 19.

c State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences , Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing , China.

Asbestos fiber has been associated with mesothelioma and lung cancer. However, the carcinogenic risks of other fiber nanomaterials with morphological similarities to asbestos have not been fully studied. Ultra-long silver nanowires (AgNWs) are increasingly used fiber-shaped nanomaterials with a high aspect ratio, but very few studies have investigated their health risks. Read More

Int J Nanomedicine 2019 23;14:773-785. Epub 2019 Jan 23.

Department of Internal Medicine, Pneumology Unit, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy.

Purpose: Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is an aggressive tumor characterized by poor prognosis. Its incidence is steadily increasing due to widespread asbestos exposure. There is still no effective therapy for MPM. Read More

J Occup Health 2019 Feb 17. Epub 2019 Feb 17.

Department of Pathological Cell Biology, Medical Research Institute, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Tokyo, Japan.

Health Policy 2019 Feb 7. Epub 2019 Feb 7.

Interface Demography, Sociology Department, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050, Brussels, Belgium. Electronic address:

While many public health threats are now widely appreciated by the public, the risks from asbestos exposure remain poorly understood, even in high-risk groups. This article makes the case that asbestos exposure is an important, ongoing global health threat, and argues for greater policy efforts to raise awareness of this threat. It also proposes the extension of asbestos bans to developing countries and increased public subsidies for asbestos testing and abatement. Read More

Curr Treat Options Oncol 2019 Feb 14;20(2):18. Epub 2019 Feb 14.

Department of Thoracic/Head and Neck Medical Oncology, University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, 1515 Holcombe Blvd. Unit 432, Houston, TX, 77030, USA.

Opinion Statement: Recent advances in immunology have extended into the mesothelioma field. To date, only Japan has given regulatory approval to salvage nivolumab in chemo-refractory mesothelioma patients. The USA has included in the NCCN guidelines that pembrolizumab (in programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) immunohistochemistry (IHC)-positive patients) and nivolumab with or without ipilimumab (whatever the PD-L1 status is) are accepted salvage therapies. Read More

Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2019 Feb 13. Epub 2019 Feb 13.

Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892;

The tumor microenvironment plays a critical role in controlling tumor progression and immune surveillance. We produced an immunotoxin (2E4-PE38) that kills mouse cells expressing CD25 by attaching the Fv portion of monoclonal antibody 2E4 (anti-mouse CD25) to a 38-kDa portion of exotoxin A. We employed three mouse cancer tumor models (AB1 mesothelioma, 66c14 breast cancer, and CT26M colon cancer). Read More

Am J Surg 2019 Jan 25. Epub 2019 Jan 25.

Department of Surgery and Oncology, Foothills Medical Centre, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Electronic address:

Background: Cytoreductive surgery and heated intraperitoneal chemotherapy (CRS/HIPEC) are commonly used in the treatment of peritoneal carcinomatosis (PC) originating from colorectal, appendiceal and ovarian cancers. It is unclear what benefit CRS/HIPEC might have for PC from uncommon etiologies, therefore we sought to describe local practice patterns and evaluate overall survival (OS).

Methods: All patients who had CRS/HIPEC between 2000 and 2016 were identified using our institutional cancer database. Read More

Biomolecules 2019 Feb 12;9(2). Epub 2019 Feb 12.

Laboratoire de Chimie des Polymères Organiques, CNRS, UMR 5629, Bordeaux, 16 Avenue Pey-Berland, F-33607 Pessac, France.

Fast clearance, metabolism, and systemic toxicity are major limits for the clinical use of anti-cancer drugs. Histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACi) present these defects, despite displaying promising anti-tumor properties on tumor cells in vitro and in in vivo models of cancer. The specific delivery of anti-cancer drugs into the tumor should improve their clinical benefit by limiting systemic toxicity and by increasing the anti-tumor effect. Read More

Cas Lek Cesk 2019 ;157(8):419-428

The tumors of the peritoneal surface, both primary and secondary, are associated with a very poor prognosis and rapid progression through conventional oncology treatment including systemic chemotherapy, targeted treatment, radiotherapy, surgery, and symptomatic treatment. Until recently, most of them were considered incurable. In the 1980s, the first cytoreductive surgery ("CRS") combined with intraperitoneal hyperthermic chemotherapy ("HIPEC") became the standard of treatment for selected tumor peritoneal tumor (pseudomyxoma peritonei and primary peritoneal malignant mesothelioma). Read More

Cas Lek Cesk 2019 ;157(8):396-399

The causes of occupational diseases are changing, thats why a regular update of Czech List of Occupational Diseases is needed. New compensable occupational diseases, such as cancer of the larynx and ovarian cancer due to asbestos, and chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases due to black coal dust were included in the last two updates of the Czech List. The need of an early examination at the Centers of Occupational Diseases is stressed in this article, especially before a surgery or other treatment of epicondylitis and carpal tunnel syndrome. Read More

Eur J Public Health 2019 Feb 7. Epub 2019 Feb 7.

Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Epidemiology and Hygiene, Italian National Workers' Compensation Authority (INAIL), Rome, Italy.

Background: This work is aimed at evaluating the quality of Italian hospitalizations data about asbestosis and silicosis, assessing the impact of these diseases on the national health system and providing advice related to public health.

Methods: Italian hospital discharge data (2001-15) with diagnosis of asbestosis or silicosis were analysed by the multiple correspondence analysis and diseases epidemics were evaluated through hospitalization rates.

Results: Hospitalizations were concentrated in the northwestern area, referred mainly to males and oldest people, the most treated tumors were lung cancer and mesothelioma (for asbestosis) and cares were aimed at reducing symptoms and increasing blood oxygenation. Read More

J Thorac Dis 2018 Dec;10(12):E819-E821

Radiotherapy Unit, Istituto Scientifico Romagnolo per lo Studio e la Cura dei Tumori (IRST) IRCCS, Meldola, Italy.

BMC Res Notes 2019 Feb 11;12(1):77. Epub 2019 Feb 11.

Institute for Prevention and Occupational Medicine of the German Social Accident Insurance, Institute of the Ruhr University Bochum (IPA), Buerkle-de-la-Camp-Platz 1, 44789, Bochum, Germany.

Objective: Malignant mesothelioma is an aggressive cancer of the serous membranes. For the detection of the tumor at early stages non- or minimally-invasive biomarkers are needed. The circulating biomarkers miR-132-3p, miR-126-3p, and miR-103a-3p were analyzed in a nested case-control study using plasma samples from 17 prediagnostic mesothelioma cases and 34 matched asbestos-exposed controls without a malignant disease. Read More

Arch Esp Urol 2019 Jan;72(1):85-88

Servicio de Urología. Hospital General Universitario de Valencia. Valencia. España.

Objective: Paratesticular mesothelioma isan infrequent tumor and only 250 cases have been published.It originates in the scrotal tunica vaginalis. It represents0. Read More

Eur J Radiol Open 2019 31;6:72-77. Epub 2019 Jan 31.

Department of Clinical Radiology, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, 3-1-1 Maidashi, Higashi-ku, Fukuoka 812-8582, Japan.

Localized malignant pleural mesothelioma (LMPM) is an extremely rare tumor. We report the case of a 40-year-old Japanese male with an LMPM mimicking an anterior mediastinal tumor due to invasion to the anterior mediastinum, and we discuss mainly the differentiation of LMPM from an anterior mediastinal tumor. The present tumor had a long shape along the pleura, and LMPM could be one of the differential diagnoses. Read More

Br J Cancer 2019 Feb 11;120(4):387-397. Epub 2019 Feb 11.

Department of Thoracic Oncology & CIC1425, Hôpital Bichat-Claude Bernard, Assistance Publique Hôpitaux de Paris, Université Paris-Diderot, Paris, France.

Background: The Mesothelioma Avastin Cisplatin Pemetrexed Study (MAPS/NCT00651456) phase 3 trial demonstrated the superiority of bevacizumab plus pemetrexed-cisplatin triplet over chemotherapy alone in 448 malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) patients. Here, we evaluated the prognostic role of Hippo pathway gene promoter methylation.

Methods: Promoter methylations were assayed using methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction in samples from 223 MAPS patients, evaluating their prognostic value for overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival in univariate and multivariate analyses. Read More

Cureus 2018 Nov 28;10(11):e3654. Epub 2018 Nov 28.

Radiology, Hyogo College of Medicine, Nishinomiya, JPN.

Talc pleurodesis has been reported to increase fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) uptake in the high attenuation areas of pleural thickening, making it difficult to distinguish between benign granulomatous inflammatory processes and malignancies, which may therefore interfere with the post-chemotherapy disease evaluation on FDG-positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT). We present two cases of malignant pleural mesothelioma treated with talc pleurodesis and neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) before pleurectomy/decortication in which post-NAC FDG-PET/CT showed intense FDG uptakes in the high attenuation areas of pleural thickening with false positive result, whereas post-NAC C-choline PET/CT showed mild choline uptake of pleural talc deposit, which did not interfere with the post-chemotherapy disease evaluation. Thus we suggest choline-PET/CT may show little choline uptake to granulomatous inflammation and evaluate treatment response in malignant pleural mesothelioma patients treated with talc pleurodesis and NAC. Read More

Pathol Int 2019 Feb 5. Epub 2019 Feb 5.

Institute of Pathology, Kepler University Hospital, Krankenhausstrasse 9, 4021, Linz, Austria.

SAGE Open Med Case Rep 2019 23;7:2050313X18824802. Epub 2019 Jan 23.

Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Kanazawa Medical University, Uchinada, Japan.

An 80-year-old male with previous workplace exposure to asbestos presented with a history of an increase in the pulmonary-to-hilar mass, measuring more than 50 mm in diameter, likely in the right lower lobe. We first interpreted it as suspicious of primary lung adenocarcinoma with direct invasion to the right hilar lymph node. A right middle and lower lobectomy with partial resection of upper lobe was performed, and gross examination showed a hilar tumor lesion, involving the middle/lower lobe to hilar lymph node and looking whitish to yellow-grayish, partly adjacent to the right pulmonary artery. Read More

Oncoimmunology 2019 2;8(2):e1537427. Epub 2018 Nov 2.

Department of Critical Care and Pulmonary Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, School of Medicine, "Evangelismos" Hospital, Athens, Greece.

Versican promotes experimental tumor growth through cell- and non cell-autonomous mechanisms. Its role in mesothelioma progression has not been investigated so far. In this study we investigated the impact of tumor-derived versican in mesothelioma progression and the underlying mechanism of its action. Read More

Anticancer Res 2019 Feb;39(2):839-845

Department of Surgery, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio, Finland

Background: Malignant peritoneal mesothelioma (MPeM) is a rare type of cancer with a poor prognosis. Cytoreductive surgery (CRS) with hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) have been shown to improve survival. Treatment and survival of patients with MPeM have not been previously studied in Finland. Read More

Anticancer Res 2019 Feb;39(2):627-633

Division of Pulmonary Medicine and Oncology, Graduate School of Medicine, Nippon Medical School, Tokyo, Japan.

Background/aim: Malignant mesothelioma (MM) is an aggressive tumor with poor prognosis. The establishment of a new diagnostic and therapeutic approach for MM is expected. This study investigated the diagnostic significance of tenascin XB (TNXB) for MM. Read More

Cancer Epidemiol 2019 Jan 29;59:75-82. Epub 2019 Jan 29.

Academic Respiratory Unit, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, UK.

Background: Historically pleural infection was thought to be associated with longer survival in thoracic malignancies. The aim of this population-based cohort study was to investigate this hypothesis in mesothelioma, using national data from a high incidence country.

Methods: Case records for all patients with mesothelioma seen in English hospitals between 01/01/2005 and 31/12/2014 were extracted from Hospital Episode Statistics using International Classification of Diseases Tenth Edition (ICD-10) codes. Read More

Thorac Cancer 2019 Jan 31. Epub 2019 Jan 31.

Thoracic Oncology Unit, National Cancer Institute, Mexico City, Mexico.

Background: Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is an aggressive tumor, associated with poor prognosis. There is a lack of information about the clinical and pathological features related with survival in the Latin American population.

Methods: The MeSO-CLICaP registry identified 302 patients with advanced MPM diagnosed and treated between January 2008 and March 2016. Read More

ANZ J Surg 2019 Feb 1. Epub 2019 Feb 1.

Department of Urology, Royal Adelaide Hospital, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.

Am J Ind Med 2019 Jan 31. Epub 2019 Jan 31.

Department of GEMS, Health Studies Institute, Rider University, Lawrenceville, New Jersey.

Background: Temporal trends and broad geographical distributions of asbestos use and the incidence of malignant mesothelioma (MM) in the US still need to be studied.

Methods: Data on asbestos consumption and production between 1900 and 2015 and MM mortality and incidence rates between 1975 and 2015 in the US were examined. Spatial distributions of MM mortality and incidence rates and their association with climate zone were analyzed. Read More

Respir Med Case Rep 2019 14;26:185-188. Epub 2019 Jan 14.

University of Pittsburgh USA.

Sudden cardiac death is an unexpected clinical condition that typically occurs due to a cardiac cause, generally within 1 h of symptom onset, in people with known or unknown cardiac disease. Primary malignant pericardial mesothelioma, as a cause of sudden death, is an uncommon consequence of a rare disease. Herein, we present a case of cardiac tamponade due to a primary pericardial mesothelioma. Read More

Respir Med 2019 Feb 18;147:72-75. Epub 2019 Jan 18.

Pneumology Department, CHU Liège, Domaine Universitaire du Sart-Tilman, B35, B4000, Liège Belgium.

Probe based confocal laser endomicroscopy (pCLE) is a new optical endoscopic technique, generating fluorescent light emission from the tissue of interest and allowing in vivo live imaging at a cellular level ("optical biopsies"). To the best of our knowledge, this article is the first to present pCLE images during medical thoracoscopy. We present here 3 different patients referred for various health problems. Read More

Arch Environ Occup Health 2019 Jan 31:1-9. Epub 2019 Jan 31.

b Department of Earth & Environmental Sciences , Rutgers University , Newark , NJ , USA.

Using the recognized amosite standard, we have performed transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and chemical analyses. We use high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and zone-axis selected area electron diffraction (SAED) to describe the molecular structure of the fibers. We find that both microscopic observational evidence and statistical dimensional characteristics indicate that the amosite fibers are formed by longitudinal splitting, with surfaces produced by fine twinning and lateral boundaries formed by parting parallel to the planes of double and triple sheets of amphibole chain structures. Read More

BMC Cancer 2019 Jan 30;19(1):108. Epub 2019 Jan 30.

Institute of Pathology, University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany.

Background: Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is a tumour arising from pleural cavities with poor prognosis. Multimodality treatment with pemetrexed combined with cisplatin shows unsatisfying response-rates of 40%. The reasons for the rather poor efficacy of chemotherapeutic treatment are largely unknown. Read More

J Surg Case Rep 2019 Jan 24;2019(1):rjy361. Epub 2019 Jan 24.

Department of Histopathology, PathLinks, Lincoln County Hospital, Greetwell Road, Lincoln, Lincolnshire, UK.

Benign multicystic mesothelioma is an extremely rare neoplasm usually arising from the visceral mesothelium of the peritoneal cavity typically presenting in young to middle-aged women. It has been deemed an indolent tumour with a possible heritable nature, but also a possible reactive neoplasm secondary to trauma. Diagnosis relies on identifying characteristic histology of cysts separated by loose connective tissue stroma and lined by pale, flat or cuboidal mesothelial cells. Read More

Iran J Pathol 2018 17;13(2):196-204. Epub 2018 Jul 17.

Registrar Pathology, Apollo Hospitals, Bangalore, Bangalore, India.

Background & Objective: Primary pleural neoplasms are rare entities compared with the pleural involvement by metastatic carcinoma.The current study aimed at investigating the complete spectrum of pleural neoplasms and differentiating between them with the aid of immunohistochemistry (IHC).

Methods: Consecutive pleural biopsy specimens positive for a neoplasm, both primary and metastatic, were included in the study. Read More

J Med Internet Res 2019 Jan 29;21(1):e10677. Epub 2019 Jan 29.

School of Public Health, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China.

Background: Cancer poses a serious threat to the health of Chinese people, resulting in a major challenge for public health work. Today, people can obtain relevant information from not only medical workers in hospitals, but also the internet in any place in real-time. Search behaviors can reflect a population's awareness of cancer from a completely new perspective, which could be driven by the underlying cancer epidemiology. Read More

Cancer Sci 2019 Jan 28. Epub 2019 Jan 28.

Laboratory of Veterinary Clinical Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Seoul National University, 1 Gwanak-ro, Gwanak-gu, Seoul, 08826, The Republic of Korea.

Metformin, a drug for type 2 diabetes mellitus, has shown therapeutic effects for various cancers. However, it had no beneficial effects on survival rate of human malignant mesothelioma (HMM) patients. This study was performed to elucidate the underlying mechanism of metformin resistance in HMM cells. Read More

Eur Radiol 2019 Jan 28. Epub 2019 Jan 28.

Department of Radiology, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, 1275 York Avenue, New York, NY, 10065, USA.

Objective: This study was conducted in order to describe the computed tomography (CT) features of local pleural recurrence in patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma undergoing intensity-modulated pleural radiation therapy (IMPRINT) as part of multimodality treatment.

Methods: In this observational study, 58 patients treated with IMPRINT between September 21, 2004, and December 1, 2014 were included. Baseline and follow-up CT scans were qualitatively assessed. Read More

J Public Health Res 2018 Dec 20;7(3):1519. Epub 2018 Dec 20.

Section of Legal Medicine and Forensic Science.

The goal of this study is to understand more about the role of asbestos in causing human diseases, first of all mesothelioma, by investigating a large series of deaths due to asbestos-related diseases (ARDs). The main aim is to clarify if even very low amounts of asbestos can cause mesothelioma and other ARDs, as well as to find out if a different individual vulnerability can be important. This retrospective study included 188 subjects who died from asbestos related diseases in 2000-2017 in the area around Broni, Italy, where an important asbestos cement factory had been active from 1932 until 1993. Read More

BMJ Open Respir Res 2019 5;6(1):e000368. Epub 2019 Jan 5.

Papworth Trials Unit Collaboration, Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Cambridge, UK.

Introduction: One of the most debilitating symptoms of malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is dyspnoea caused by pleural effusion. MPM can be complicated by the presence of tumour on the visceral pleura preventing the lung from re-expanding, known as trapped lung (TL). There is currently no consensus on the best way to manage TL. Read More

Rev Mal Respir 2019 Jan 24. Epub 2019 Jan 24.

Centre François-Baclesse, avenue du Général-Harris, 14076 Caen cedex 5, France.

Malignant mesothelioma is a rare tumour, usually the result of asbestos exposure. Several cases of familial aggregation have been reported and recently shown to be associated with constitutional mutations of the BAP1 gene. BAP1 is a deubiquitinating enzyme implicated in several different cellular mechanisms such as the repair or differentiation of DNA. Read More

Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2019 Mar 23;510(2):198-204. Epub 2019 Jan 23.

Centre for Inflammation and Tissue Repair, Rayne Institute, Department of Medicine, University College London, London, UK; Institute for Respiratory Health, Centre for Respiratory Health, University of Western Australia, Nedlands, WA, Australia; Centre for Cell Therapy and Regenerative Medicine, School of Biomedical Sciences, University of Western Australia, Australia. Electronic address:

Malignant mesothelioma is an aggressive fibrous tumor, predominantly of the pleura, with a very poor prognosis. Cell-matrix interactions are recognized important determinants of tumor growth and invasiveness but the role of the extracellular matrix in mesothelioma is unknown. Mesothelioma cells synthesize collagen as well as transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β), a key regulator of collagen production. Read More

Support Care Cancer 2019 Jan 25. Epub 2019 Jan 25.

Centre for Medical Psychology and Evidence-Based Decision-Making, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2006, Australia.

Background: Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) has a poor prognosis and heavy symptom burden. Here, we investigate health professionals' attitudes to management and decision-making in people with MPM.

Methods: Survey questions were based on previous interviews with health professionals, MPM patients, and caregivers. Read More