July 2008 – Mesothelioma Blog

Researchers have published two studies that show Alimta and Paraplatin form a promising combination for patients with mesothelioma.

In September 2007 at the 12th World Conference on Lung Cancer, scientists presented a study on the combination of Alimta and Paraplatin as a treatment option for patients with malignant mesothelioma. The first study had an overall response rate of 22 percent with a disease control rate of 76 percent and a one-year survival rate of 64 percent. The median time to disease progression was seven months.

A second study by Italian researchers evaluated Alimta and Paraplatin as a palliative treatment for 178 patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma. The median patient age was 65 years and 48 patients were older than 70.

The disease control rate was 67 percent in younger patients compared to 60 percent in older patients. Time to disease progression was 7.2 months for older patients compared with 7.5 months for younger patients. The median survival time was 10.7 months for older patients compared to 13.9 for younger ones. The authors of the study concluded that Alimta and Paraplatin form an effective palliative treatment option for patients but with slightly more hematological toxicity in older patients.

A French aircraft carrier containing more than 700 tons of asbestos could be dismantled in England after more than four years of legal controversy.

Once the pride of the French Navy, Clemenceau is set to be scrapped by Able UK an English firm that specializes in ship and offshore structure recycling.

The 33,000 ton carrier sailed more than one million nautical miles and saw action around the world that included protecting shipping lanes during the Iran-Iraq War and a support role during Operation Desert Storm.

The ship was originally set to be demolished in India’s notorious Alang shipyard but protests by Greenpeace and members of the socialist opposition halted the project as they called attention to working conditions and the ships toxic material that includes lead, PCBs, asbestos and other contaminants.

The ship was then returned to French waters and has sat idle while negotiations continue. Able UK indicated it has received the initial permits from the Health Safety Executive required for dismantling and will bring jobs to the Teesside area in northeastern England. The only major hurdle is that the company needs a transfrontier shipment permit to transfer the vessel from France to England.