New Research Demonstrates Synergy Between Light Therapy and Chemotherapy, According to Surviving Mesothelioma
Raleigh, NC (PRWEB) February 12, 2015 -- Doctors in Cheonan, Korea claim that their new mesothelioma case report shows how photodynamic therapy enhances the effectiveness of chemotherapy. Click here to read the full story on the Surviving Mesothelioma website.
Scientists at Dankook University College of Medicine treated a 68-year-old mesothelioma patient with chemotherapy and photodynamic therapy, a treatment that makes cancer cells susceptible to damage from light. The results suggest that there may be a synergistic effect between the two.
“The patient showed a survival time of 27 months, which is longer than median survival time in advanced mesothelioma patients,” write Drs. Ryu and Kim who authored the report.
According to the article in a Seoul-based medical journal, the patient received photodynamic therapy (also called PDT) both after and before rounds of platinum-based chemotherapy.
“We think this case is notable because the life expectancy for someone with advanced mesothelioma would normally be less than a year,” says Alex Strauss, Managing Editor of Surviving Mesothelioma. “At the very least, this is an indication that more PDT research is warranted for mesothelioma.”
To read the exact treatment protocol that allowed the Korean mesothelioma patient to survive for more than two years, see Light-Based Therapy Leads to Longer Survival in Korean Mesothelioma Patient, now available on the Surviving Mesothelioma website.
Ryu, JW and Kim, YS, “A case of advanced malignant pleural mesothelioma treatment with chemotherapy and photodynamic therapy,” January 2015, Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases, http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25653696
For nearly ten years, Surviving Mesothelioma has brought readers the most important and ground-breaking news on the causes, diagnosis and treatment of mesothelioma. All Surviving Mesothelioma news is gathered and reported directly from the peer-reviewed medical literature. Written for patients and their loved ones, Surviving Mesothelioma news helps families make more informed decisions.
Michael Ellis, Cancer Monthy, http://www.survivingmesothelioma.com, +1 (919) 570-8595, [email protected]
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