Current Medicinal Chemistry by C. Belli and colleagues has analyzed angiogenic factors in the development of malignant mesothelioma cancer.
Angiogenesis is the process of new blood vessel growth from pre-existing vessels. The researchers believe that a better understanding of molecular mechanisms and pathways involved in angiogenesis is the basis for developing new drugs against malignant mesothelioma. Such drugs that target these pathways may impact the proliferation and survival of tumor cells.
The standard treatment option for mesothelioma patients involves chemotherapy with a combination of the drugs cisplatin and pemetrexed. However, the use of chemotherapy does not always have a significant impact on the improvement of survival. The average mesothelioma life expectancy ranges between four and 18 months after diagnosis.
Mesothelioma is a cancer almost exclusively caused by asbestos exposure. The primary reason why most patients are diagnosed during an advanced stage of development is because of the severe latency period of symptoms. Symptoms often become noticeable once the cancer has already developed, sometimes taking as long as 50 years to arise from the time someone was initially exposed to asbestos.
The study evaluated the role of angiogenic factors in tumor development by revising results from clinical trials, research articles, abstracts and oral presentations from the American Society of Clinical Oncology. Information on clinical trials was retrieved from ClinicalTrials.gov.
According to the researchers, “A better understanding of the angiogenic pathways activated in malignant mesothelioma will hopefully provide new therapeutic options for these patients in the future.”
Additional information on mesothelioma may be found through the Mesothelioma Center.
See also
Mesothelioma
(source:asbestos.com)
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