Research Finds Some Mesothelioma Patients May Be Short-changed on Chemotherapy, Reports Surviving Mesothelioma
Raleigh, NC (PRWEB) November 19, 2014 -- A new study out of Australia finds huge disparity between the number of mesothelioma patients getting chemotherapy in different countries – and all of them fall short. Click here to read an article on the new research on the Surviving Mesothelioma website.
Doctors with the Asbestos Diseases Research Institute in Sydney, Australia compared epidemiological data on mesothelioma patients with evidence-based treatment recommendations and found that no country reach the optimal utilization level.
“Chemotherapy is recommended at least once during the disease trajectory in 65% of malignant pleural mesothelioma patients,” writes lead author Dr. Stephen Chuan-Hao Kao.
However, the study, published in the Asia-Pacific Journal of Clinical Oncology, found a chemotherapy utilization rate among mesothelioma patients as low as 18% in some countries.
“Until there is a cure for mesothelioma, chemotherapy remains the most important line of defense for most patients,” says Alex Strauss, Managing Editor of Surviving Mesothelioma. “This study suggests that, even in areas with strong medical systems, too many patients are not receiving optimal treatment.”
To see a few of the highest, and one of the lowest, countries in chemotherapy utilization, see Chemotherapy May be Underutilized for Mesothelioma, now available on the Surviving Mesothelioma website.
Kao, SC et al, “Estimation of an optimal chemotherapy utilization rate of malignant pleural mesothelioma: An evidence-based benchmark for cancer care”, November 10, 2014, Asia-Pacific Journal of Clinical Oncology, November 10, 2014, Epub ahead of Print, http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ajco.12306/abstract;jsessionid=05B0F2267041943CF73F517CA71463A7.f02t03?deniedAccessCustomisedMessage=&userIsAuthenticated=false
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Michael Ellis, Cancer Monthy, http://www.survivingmesothelioma.com, +1 (919) 570-8595, [email protected]
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