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  • Home > Blog > Chemotherapy > Pittsburgh Physicians Give Hope to Peritoneal Mesothelioma Patients through HIPEC
Posted on Monday, Nov 1, 2010

Pittsburgh Physicians Give Hope to Peritoneal Mesothelioma Patients through HIPEC

The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), an $8 billion global health enterprise, is western Pennsylvania’s largest employer, with 50,000 employees based in Pittsburgh alone.  It has also performed more hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemoperfusion (HIPEC) procedures than anywhere else in the world.  HIPEC is a new, innovative advanced chemotherapy technique to treat patients with abdominal cavity cancer, including peritoneal mesothelioma, that has advanced beyond a surgical cure.

Peritoneal mesothelioma is a form of cancer that is almost always caused by asbestos exposure and affects the lining of the abdomen.  While there are close to 3,000 cases of mesothelioma diagnosed in the United States each year, less than 10% of those are peritoneal.

Oncologists that treat patients with HIPEC at UPMC found that at 6 weeks after treatment their patients had a better quality of life than before the treatment.  The HIPEC process for treating peritoneal mesothelioma and other GI cancers involves bathing the patient’s abdomen with heated high-dose chemotherapy drugs to reach the multiple tumors within the abdominal cavity.  This form of chemotherapy limits exposure to the rest of the body and is highly effective in killing the cancer cells.

David Bartlett, MD, Chief, Division of Surgical Oncology at UPMC, said “we are seeing people living 3-4 years longer than we would expect without this treatment.”  He also said the patients receiving the treatments are very heroic and are willing to go through a lot to fight the disease.  After treatment the cancer and symptoms may not reappear for several years, in which case, HIPEC can be offered again.

The procedure is complex and at UPMC a team of surgeons work together to treat each patient.  Niraj Gusani, MD, Surgical Oncologist, one of the surgeons, said HIPEC treatment should seriously be considered for abdominal cancers.  “HIPEC may give you more meaningful time to spend with your loved ones and your family,” said Gusani.  Bartlett added that UPMC’s “goal with HIPEC is to enhance quality of life and prolong survival.”

There is no cure for mesothelioma, however, with new treatments, such as HIPEC, patients are finding they can return to living their lives as before.  Gusani finds his work very rewarding and said that some patients that have lost hope “come to us, and often we are able to give them hope.”

HIPEC Offers Hope