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Review
. 2020 Mar;4(Suppl 2):e000669.
doi: 10.1136/esmoopen-2019-000669.

How I treat malignant pleural mesothelioma

Giuseppe Viscardi  1 , Raimondo Di Liello  1 , Floriana Morgillo  2
Affiliations
Review

How I treat malignant pleural mesothelioma

Giuseppe Viscardi et al. ESMO Open. 2020 Mar.

Abstract

Malignant pleural mesothelioma is a rare and aggressive malignancy mostly associated with occupational asbestos exposure. Prognosis is poor and only highly selected patients may benefit from aggressive surgical management, also as part of a multimodal approach. In advanced disease, the combination of pemetrexed and platinum remains the only established treatment, while efficacy evidence of second line chemotherapy is lacking. Thus, a deeper knowledge of biology of the disease and more effective treatments are urgently needed. Refer to specialised centres with multidisciplinary expertise is mandatory, as well as inclusion of patients in clinical trials is advisable whenever possible. In all stages of disease focus on symptoms control is paramount.

Keywords: malignant pleural mesothelioma; mesothelioma.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests: FM: Advisory Boards: MSD, Lilly; Institutional Research Grants: AstraZeneca.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Proposed algorithm for management of MPM. MPM, malignant pleural mesothelioma; PD, progressive disease; CT, chemotherapy; BSC, best supportive care.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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