New Mesothelioma Treatments - Gene Therapies

One exciting area of new mesothelioma treatment is in the area of gene therapies. Gene therapy is an approach to treating potentially fatal or disabling diseases by modifying the expression of an individual's genes toward a therapeutic goal.

Cancer results from either the over expression of the oncogenes or the tumor suppressor genes becoming ineffective. The tumor suppressor genes which keeps a check on the development of cancer can be either defective or missing which results in the development of cancer. Gene therapy is a new mesothelioma treatment that can be used either to block the oncogenes or replace the missing or the defective tumor suppressor genes. Gene therapy can also be used to make the conventional chemotherapy and the radiotherapy more effective against the cancer cells.

Gene therapies are divided in to three groups.

* Replacing defective or missing tumor suppressor gene
* Blocking oncogenes
* Modification of the genetic information

New Mesothelioma Treatments - Photodynamic Therapy

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a type of new mesothelioma cancer treatment based on the premise that single-celled organisms, if first treated with certain photosensitive drugs, will die when exposed to light at a particular frequency. PDT destroys cancerous cells by using this fixed frequency light to activate photosensitizing drugs which have accumulated in body tissues.

This laser light is delivered to the cancer site, (in the case of mesothelioma, the pleura), through a fiberoptic device that allows the laser light to be manipulated by the physician. As the agent in the treated cells absorbs the light, an active form of oxygen destroys the surrounding cancer cells.

The major side effect of PDT is skin sensitivity. Patients undergoing this type of therapy are usually advised to avoid direct and even indirect sunlight for at least six weeks. Researchers are still excited about the new mesothelioma treatment even with some of the tough side effects.

New Mesothelioma Treatments - Immunotherapy

A new mesothelioma treatment option lies in the area of immunotherapy. There is some evidence that mesothelioma cells are susceptible to immune mechanisms, and that the potential exists for mesothelioma to be successfully treated through immunological means. Most studies to date, however, have focused on single-agent therapy and because the tumor has several mechanisms which allow it to evade recognition by the immune system, limited results have been achieved thus far. It is hoped that by combining surgery, chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy with immunotherapy, that results will ultimately improve.

Types of immunotherapies may include:

* Active immunotherapies or those which stimulate the body's own defenses to fight disease.
* Passive immunotherapies or those which use immune system components created outside the body.
* Non-specific immunotherapies and adjuvants or those which stimulate the body's immune system in very general ways, but may still show activity against cancer cells.

New Mesothelioma Treatments

New mesothelioma treatments are currently being tested. They often combine traditional treatments or include something entirely new. These treatments include angiogenesis and anti-angiogenesis drugs which are drugs which target the tumor itself while sparing the body’s normal cells. Anti-angiogenesis is a targeted therapy using drugs or other substances to prevent tumors from creating new blood vessels, thus, stopping the growth of the tumor. Researchers are currently studying both natural and synthetic anti-angiogenesis inhibitors.

A Phase II clinical trial of cisplatin, pemetrexed and bevacizumab for untreated mesothelioma and a Phase II trial of bevacizumab and erlotinib for previously treated mesothelioma are ongoing, and trials of other anti-angiogenesis agents are being tested in mesothelioma as well. These new mesothelioma treatments seem to be promising.

Watch for other posts concerning new treatments!