Finally some good news for our mesothelioma clients. The FDA has approved Bristol Myers Squibb drug combination of Opdivo and Yervoy to be used to treat a form of mesothelioma. It’s been 16 years since there has been a drug to treat malignant pleural mesothelioma where surgery is not an option.
FDA Approves Drug Combination for Treating Mesothelioma
Mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer caused by breathing asbestos fibers from a variety of possible sources over the past 50 years. Typically it takes anywhere from 15-50 years from once you breathe the asbestos fibers for it to actually cause mesothelioma, asbestos lung cancer or asbestosis. According to the FDA, about 20,000 Americans are diagnosed with mesothelioma each year from breathing asbestos found in construction materials (sheetrock, joint compound, roofing shingles and felt), powerplants, papermills, shipyards, and aboard ships (pipe covering, block, gaskets, packing, firebrick, etc), automobiles (friction products like brake shoes and clutch discs), and many more trades and occupations that brought unsuspecting people into contact with asbestos.
“Today’s approval of nivolumab (Opdivo) plus ipilimumab (Yervoy) provides a new treatment that has demonstrated an improvement in overall survival for patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma,” said Richard Pazdur, MD, director of the FDA’s Oncology Center of Excellence. “In 2004, FDA approved pemetrexed in combination with cisplatin for this indication, and now patients now have an important, additional treatment option after more than a decade with only one FDA-approved drug regimen.”
Additionally, one can also develop mesothelioma from long term exposure to talcum powder that was sadly contaminated with asbestos. Johnson and Johnson, among others, has been recalling baby powder that appears to have been contaminated with chrysotile asbestos. It appears from their corporate records during the 1960s and 1970s, that many of the companies knew that their talcum powder was contaminated with asbestos and yet still sold it to the unsuspecting public with no warnings.
If you or a loved one is diagnosed with mesothelioma or lung cancer, please contact us for a free consultation. We only charge a fee if we are successful with your case. We are here to help.
