Currently, there is no cure for mesothelioma, and many treatment options revolve around surgery, radiation, or therapy. But could targeted treatment and precision oncology provide better patient outcomes? According to Mesothelioma.net, researchers are currently attempting to develop precision treatment using genetics. Through the study, researchers identified 48 genes in patients with mesothelioma that help predict overall survival rates. Additionally, these genes may be used in the future for more targeted immunotherapy.

The Research

Altogether, the research was performed by members of the National Cancer Institute (NCI), a subset of the National Institute of Health (NIH). To begin, researchers sourced data from 122 mesothelioma patients. All patients previously received treatment for their cancers. Through this data, researchers also received insight into the genomic, phenotypic, and transcriptomic tumor data, as well as patient survival rates.

Approximately 50% of patients whose data was used had malignant pleural mesothelioma, by far the most common form. The additional 50% of patients had peritoneal mesothelioma.

After evaluating the data, researchers discovered 48 genes which predict overall survival. In particular, when found expressed in tumors, these genes are associated with worse survival. Because many of the genes are associated with DNA repair, researchers believe that the tumors are able to self-repair, creating treatment resistance. For example, CCNB1 was found to be highly expressed. As a result, researchers now believe that these genes could be used to develop targeted therapies.

Mesothelioma