Mesothelioma Patients May Benefit from Colorado Cancer Center Grant for Lung Cancer Clinical Trial

ImClone Systems, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Eli Lilly and Company, has awarded a $3.5 million grant to the University of Colorado Cancer Center. The award will be used to fund a clinical trial to test for a specific biomarker in lung cancer patients known as an epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). Other researchers have found that in many cases growth factors appeared higher in malignant mesothelioma patients than in control subjects or in healthy individuals.

Mesothelioma, an unusual form of cancer which can take up to five decades to be properly diagnosed, is responsible for approximately 3,000 new cases each year in the United States. Although there is no cure for mesothelioma, it can be treated with varying degrees of success through the use of surgical procedures, chemotherapy and radiation.

Biologic characteristics are different for each patient, and by identifying the markers specific to a patient and his tumor, physicians will be able to move to personalized medicine. This can provide mesothelioma and lung cancer patients with treatment targeted specifically to their medical needs and could eventually make chemotherapy more effective for specific types of cancer patients.

In December the University also received a Stand Up to Cancer Innovative Research Grant of $750,000 over three years for a “high-risk, high-reward research project — high-risk because it challenges the way cancer science is currently being done, and high-reward because of its potential for saving lives.”

See Cancer Center Awarded Grant for the full story.