Biological Therapies

Biological therapies can be defined as a targeted therapy used to attack a particular protein, enzyme or other cellular component or an approach using inhibitors (i.e. anti-angiogenesis), monoclonal antibodies or other substances. Also included in this category are the use of analogues of natural substances (such as a vitamin). Radio-immunotherapy therapy, photodynamic therapy, and thermal therapies can also classified under this heading. Some of these approaches have been tried in treating mesothelioma.

Glossary

Analogue a substance derived from the modification or alteration of the chemical structure of another substance while retaining a similar pharmacological effect.

Angiogenesis refers to the formation of new blood vessels from preexisting vasculature.

Anti-angiogenesis is the process of stopping the formation of new blood vessels.

Enzyme is a complex polymer of biological origin (usually a protein) that acts as a catalyst in one or more chemical reactions. A catalyst is any substance that increases the rate of a chemical reaction without itself being changed by the reaction.

Hyperthermia is defined as an abnormally high body temperature.

Monoclonal Antibody (MAb) is a specific antibody produced in large quantity by the clones of a single hybrid cell formed in the laboratory by the fusion of a B cell with a tumor cell. The resulting hybrid cell, or hybridoma, multiplies rapidly, creating a clone that produces large quantities of the antibody.

Radioimmunotherapy is where radioactive substances are attached to a monoclonal antibody.

Photodynamic Therapy a technique that uses non-thermal lasers to activate light-sensitive drugs.

Results of Biological Therapies Administered to Mesothelioma Patients

Important Note: These are summaries of results of clinical trials that have been made available by Cancer Monthly: The Source for Cancer Treatment Results. The source data are the clinical results reported in the medical literature. To learn more about these treatments click on the icon under "More Information." This will open a new window that will contain the study's abstract. Print out the abstract and share it with your doctor. Your doctor can help you determine if a particular treatment is right for you. For more information about toxicity grades see below. For more treatment results for mesothelioma and many other cancers visit Cancer Monthly.

Treatment Description	Median Survival Rate	Side-Effects	More Information
27 patients were involved. The treatment consisted of a combination of hyperthermia with three chemotherapy drugs - ifosfamide (IFEX), carboplatin (paraplatin), and etoposide (vepesid).	Median survival was 76.6 weeks (17.8 months).	There was one death associated with progressive disease and sepsis. Other toxicities included hematologic (grades 1-4), gastrointestinal (grades 1-3), nausea and vomiting (grades 1-3), hepatic (grades 1-2), skin (grade 3), and renal (grades 1-2). In addition, there were two cardiac complications during hyperthermia.	Article
13 patients were involved. The treatment consisted of a suspension of heat-killed Mycobacterium vaccae (SRL172), a fast growing avirulent mycobacterium, that may have non-specific immunomodulating properties in combination with standard chemotherapy (mitomycin-C (mitozytrex), vinblastine (velban) and cisplatin (platinol)).	The median overall survival was 10.5 months.	Grade 1-3 toxicities included infection, emesis, mucositis, diarrhea, constipation, alopecia, neuropathy, fatigue, and hematological.	Article
28 patients were involved. The treatment consisted of surgery (pleuropneumonectomy) with intraoperative photodynamic therapy (the drug mTHPC). (Photodynamic therapy is a technique that uses non-thermal lasers to activate light-sensitive drugs.)	The overall median survival time was 10 months.	Three patients died in the perioperative period (the period immediately preceding, during and after a surgical procedure.) One of the three deaths was directly related to photodynamic therapy.	Article

Toxicity Grades

Toxicities (or side-effects) are generally graded from one to five. The higher the number, the more toxic were the side-effects from the treatment. There are a number of different toxicity scales (i.e. National Cancer Institute Common Toxicity Criteria version 2.0, World Health Organization) and they are all similar in respect to their grades and definitions. The scale is generally:

1 = Mild side-effects
2 = Moderate side-effects
3 = Severe side-effects
4 = Life Threatening or Disabling side-effects
5 = Fatal

What is included in the table above are the highest grades for one or more toxicities reported for one or more patients. This means that even if only one patient had one example of a grade 4 toxicity and every other patient had grade 2, the grade for that treatment will be reported as a 4.