Conditions: Pleural Mesothelioma
Allocation: NA | Intervention model: SINGLE_GROUP
Enrollment: 9
Healthy volunteers: no

Brief summary:
The primary objective of the study is to determine the feasibility (as determined by lack of serious adverse events) and tolerability (as determined by patient's ability to complete the study) of a multimodal lung sparing regimen of surgery, interpleural and intravenous chemotherapy, and local P-32 irradiation for malignant pleural mesothelioma.

Detailed description:
Current surgical and/or chemotherapeutic approaches for malignant pleural mesothelioma are unsatisfactory and have not been shown to significantly prolong survival, and often lead to worsened pulmonary function and quality of life. We will investigate whether a prospective trial of trimodal (surgery, pleural chemotherapy, and pleural radiation) therapy can improve the overall 1 year survival in patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma. The proposed treatment will include exploratory thoracoscopy, placement of Mediport catheters into the pleural space, intraoperative chemotherapy, repeated intraperitoneal chemotherapy, and intrapleural instillation of radioactive P32 to radiate the pleural surfaces. In addition, because this study is randomized, half the patients will receive an additional three intravenous systemic chemotherapy treatments of cisplatin and pemetrexed (Alimta) in tandem with their intrapleural chemotherapy (weeks 3, 6, and 9 only).

The potential significance of this research is that such treatment may render it less necessary to surgically remove the affected lungs in whole or in part, in order to achieve significant disease cytoreduction. We hope to alter the currently accepted paradigm that major lung surgery is an inescapable component of such treatment, and advance the concept that a combination of judicious preparative surgery, systemic chemotherapy, and locoregional drug treatment of the pleural surfaces may offer the best hope for prolongation of survival with intact lung function.

Arms:
arm 1: Intrapleural chemotherapy plus systemic chemotherapy:

Thoracoscopy to implant two intrapleural catheters followed by intrapleural chemotherapy with doxorubicin and cisplatin (weeks 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, and 8). Systemic chemotherapy treatments with cisplatin and pemetrexed during weeks 3, 6, and 9. Intrapleural radiotherapy with P-32 will be given 3 weeks after last dose of chemotherapy and 11 to 12 weeks after initial thoracoscopy.

Interventions: intervention 1: Doxorubicin intervention 2: Cisplatin intervention 3: Pemetrexed intervention 4: Radiotherapy
Intervention descriptions: intervention 1: A medication used in cancer chemotherapy, derived by chemical semisynthesis from a bacterial species. intervention 2: Platinum-based antineoplastic intervention 3: Folate Analog Metabolic Inhibitor intervention 4: Standard procedure given 3 weeks after last dose of chemotherapy

Protocol document: