Dr. Baas on the Standard of Care for Mesothelioma Patients

Paul Baas, MD, PhD, thoracic oncologist in the Division of Medical Oncology of the Netherlands Cancer Institute in Amsterdam, discusses the standard of care for mesothelioma patients.

Baas describes the current standard, platinum with an antifolate, as successful at first but does not have long-term benefits beyond 2 years.

There are currently 2 phase III studies investigating mesothelioma treatment. The first study was presented at ASCO and failed to produce results. Another study that will be presented at ESMO looks at recurrent mesothelioma.

New treatments for mesothelioma are constantly being investigated because asbestos is still commonly used in third world countries that do not have any rules or regulations against its use.