Mesothelioma

Mesothelioma (or, more precisely, malignant mesothelioma) is a rare form of cancer that develops from cells of the mesothelium, the protective lining that covers many of the internal organs of the body. Mesothelioma is most commonly caused by exposure to asbestos. The most common anatomical site for mesothelioma is the pleura (the outer lining of the lungs and internal chest wall), but it can also arise in the peritoneum (the lining of the abdominal cavity), the pericardium (the sac that surrounds the heart), or the tunica vaginalis (a sac that surrounds the testis).

Most people who develop mesothelioma have worked in careers such as mining, where they inhaled or ingested asbestos fibers, or were exposed to airborne asbestos dust and fibers in other ways. Washing the clothing of a family member who worked with asbestos also creates a risk for developing mesothelioma.

Signs and symptoms of mesothelioma include shortness of breath due to pleural effusion (fluid between the lung and the chest wall), chest wall pain and constitutional signs such as unexplained weight loss. The diagnosis may be suspected based on chest X-ray and CT scan findings, but must be confirmed either by examining serous effusion cytology or with a biopsy (removing a sample of the suspicious tissue). A thoracoscopy (inserting a tube with a camera into the chest) can be used to acquire biopsy material, and allows the introduction of substances such as talc to obliterate the pleural space (a procedure called pleurodesis), preventing more fluid from accumulating and pressing on the lung. Despite treatment with chemotherapy, radiation therapy or sometimes surgery, mesothelioma carries a poor prognosis. Research about screening tests for the early detection of mesothelioma is ongoing. [Wikipedia]

A Case of Mismanagement: A Tragic Cancer Story in Minnesota

Iron Range Legislators want Health Commissioner Diane Mandernach fired


An investigative report in the Minneapolis Star Tribune has revealed that the Minnesota Health Commissioner learned in March 2006 that at least another 35 Iron Range miners had died of mesothelioma (a cancer associated with asbestos exposure). This is more than double the 17 miners originally identified as having died of mesothelioma in a 2003 report.

On Wednesday of this week, Minnesota Health Department officials said they had found an additional six cases (bringing the total number of miners affected to 58).

Legislators want Health Commissioner Diane Mandernach (man-dur-NAHK') fired. Commissioner Mandernach apologized on Wednesday for her department’s failure to release the cancer data. However, Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty is rebuffing calls for her removal.

On Thursday of this week, state Rep. Tom Rukavina, received strong support for announcing the University of Minnesota would spearhead a study of mesothelioma deaths among Iron Range workers. Rukavina said the public no longer trusts the Minnesota Health Department to do the work.

related articles:

Timberjay News: Legislators want Health Commissioner fired

StarTribune: Iron Rangers sound off at Mandernach

KARE: Health commissioner grilled by lawmakers

Asbestos Study: Asbestos Disease Patients Younger Now

New findings from the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) show that asbestos disease patients are almost 20 years younger than asbestos patients 20 years ago.

Examining case reports from the past 3 years, ADAO determined that the typical new patient is, on average, 51 years old, while half of new patients are women. In addition, ADAO said it collected anecdotal evidence indicating that patients newly diagnosed with asbestos-related diseases such as mesothelioma, asbestosis and lung cancer are as young as under the age of 40 – and even more disturbing, have had no direct occupational exposure to asbestos.

read>>>Occupational Hazards

Nebraska Supreme Court affirms Worker Compensation award for asbestos induced mesothelioma that plaintiff's doctors diagnosed more than 20 years after his retirment from the employer but orders no disability payments to plaintiff's widow. No nod to Daubert in this opinion with shaky evidence for the plaintiff. Olivotto v. DeMarco Bros. Co., S-05-1526

read:::HuskerBlawgs

Alfacell Announces Third-Quarter Financial Results and Highlights

BLOOMFIELD, N.J., June 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Alfacell Corporation today announced its financial results and highlights for the quarter ended April 30, 2007.

The company reported a net loss of approximately $2 million, or 4 cents per basic and diluted share, for the quarter ended April 30, 2007, compared to a loss of $1.7 million, or 5 cents per basic and diluted share, for the same quarter a year ago. Increased research and development expenses and general and administrative expenses of approximately $0.1 million and $0.3 million, respectively, were offset by increased interest income of approximately $0.1 million as compared to the same quarter last fiscal year.

When compared to the second quarter of the current fiscal year, third- quarter research and development expenses were reduced by approximately $0.2 million, or approximately 15%, and general and administrative expenses were reduced by approximately $0.2 million, or approximately 19%. This represents an overall reduction in expenses of approximately $0.4 million, or nearly 17%, during the third quarter of fiscal 2007.

For the nine months ended April 30, 2007, the company reported a loss of approximately $6.3 million, or 14 cents per basic and diluted share. This represents an increase of approximately $0.6 million, compared to a $5.7 million net loss, or 15 cents per basic and diluted share, for the nine-month period ended April 30, 2006. The increased net loss year-to-date is due to increased research and development expenses of approximately $0.4 million and increased general and administrative expenses of approximately $0.6 million. These expenses were offset by increased interest income of approximately $0.2 million and increased proceeds from the sale of state tax loss carryforwards of approximately $0.2 million.

As of April 30, 2007, the company had cash and equivalents on hand of $6.5 million, compared to cash and equivalents of approximately $8 million on January 31, 2007. The company believes that this level of cash and cash equivalents is sufficient to fund operations through the fiscal year ending July 31, 2008, based on the current expected level of revenues and expenditures.

"We are excited with the significant progress we are making at Alfacell as we move toward the completion of our Phase IIIb clinical trial for ONCONASE(R) in patients suffering from unresectable malignant mesothelioma," said Kuslima Shogen, Alfacell's chairman and chief executive officer. "Our team is preparing to expedite the completion of the NDA filing as soon as we receive the trial results. We're also working toward moving ONCONASE into Phase II trials later this year for the treatment of other cancers."

Highlights of the third quarter include:

-- ONCONASE may have potential as a chemopreventive agent, according to world-renowned mesothelioma researcher Michele Carbone M.D., Ph.D. In a series of poster presentations at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting, Dr. Carbone highlighted the growing worldwide problem of asbestos exposure and its link to malignant mesothelioma. Dr. Carbone stated that ONCONASE's favorable toxicity profile and its well-documented mechanism of action, which directly affects the pathway that has been shown to cause asbestos carcinogenesis, position ONCONASE for potential early administration to populations "at-risk" for mesothelioma. If clinically validated, this new approach might enable physicians to use ONCONASE as a chemopreventive agent to potentially prevent the onset of mesothelioma or reduce the doses of cytotoxic agents needed in those patients who develop the disease.

-- In vivo and in vitro preclinical data presented in a poster at the AACR Annual Meeting also showed that ONCONASE significantly inhibits tumor growth of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and breast cancer cells. Intae Lee, Ph.D., and collaborators at the University of Pennsylvania demonstrated in a poster that ONCONASE significantly inhibited tumor growth by inducing apoptosis (cell death) in A549 and NCI-H1975 human NSCLC cells and MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7 human breast cancer cells without damaging non-cancerous cells such as HLF-1 human lung fibroblast and NCI/3T3 fibroblast. Additionally, the data indicated that twice-weekly injections of ONCONASE were more effective than an equivalent single dose injection in these tumor types.

-- European researchers identified the pathway that ONCONASE follows to enter cells. Published in the Journal of Cell Science (2007; 120: 1405-1411), a paper based on studies conducted at the University of Girona in Spain and the University of Montpellier II in France showed that ONCONASE enters cells using AP-2/clathrin-mediated endocytosis, enabling its subsequent delivery to the cytosol. The published data indicate that unlike other RNases, ONCONASE and its endocytosis pathway is not targeted to lysosomes.

-- In a paper entitled "Mild hyperthermia predisposes tumor cells to undergo apoptosis upon treatment with ONCONASE" published in the International Journal of Oncology (April 2007), researchers indicated that in vitro studies demonstrate mild hyperthermia enhances the therapeutic effects of ONCONASE. The studies conducted by Zbigniew Darzynkiewicz, M.D., Ph.D., and collaborators demonstrated apoptosis, or programmed cell death, increased up to 200 percent when ONCONASE was applied to lymphoblastoid TK6 cells at 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit), compared to treatment at 37.5 degrees Celsius (99.5 degrees Fahrenheit). In these experiments, apoptosis was manifested by classical changes in cell morphology and the activation of caspase-3, both considered hallmarks of the apoptotic mode of cell death.

-- According to the Handbook of Therapeutic Antibodies, ONCONASE showed potential to act as a potent payload in antibody conjugates for cancer therapy. In a chapter of the text that reviews immunotoxins, Susanna Rybak, Ph.D., summarized preclinical research indicating that the specificity and potency of ONCONASE improves in a number of tumor models, including non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, when it is conjugated with various antibodies. Dr. Rybak also reviewed evidence that implies that ONCONASE may also be effectively targeted to tumors as a conjugate with non-internalizing antibodies, as compared with the internalizing antibodies required by standard plant and bacterial toxins.

-- Michael S. Kinch, Ph.D., joined Alfacell's scientific advisory board. Dr. Kinch assists with optimizing the development of ribonuclease-based therapeutics. His scientific areas of expertise include cancer cell metastasis, signal transduction, antiviral development, immunology, cell biology, biochemistry and in vivo studies.

About ONCONASE(R)

ONCONASE is a first-in-class therapeutic product candidate based on Alfacell's proprietary ribonuclease (RNase) technology. A natural protein isolated from the leopard frog, ONCONASE has been shown in the laboratory and clinic to target cancer cells while sparing normal cells. ONCONASE triggers apoptosis, the natural death of cells, via multiple molecular mechanisms of action.

About Alfacell Corporation

Alfacell Corporation is the first company to advance a biopharmaceutical product candidate that works in a manner similar to RNA interference (RNAi) through late-stage clinical trials. The product candidate, ONCONASE, is an RNase that overcomes the challenges of targeting RNA for therapeutic purposes while enabling the development of a new class of targeted therapies for cancer and other life-threatening diseases. In addition to an ongoing Phase IIIb study in malignant mesothelioma, Alfacell is conducting a Phase I/II trial of ONCONASE in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and other solid tumors. For more information, visit http://www.alfacell.com.

Safe Harbor

This press release includes statements that may constitute "forward- looking" statements, usually containing the words "believe," "estimate," "project," "expect" or similar expressions. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. Factors that would cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, uncertainties involved in transitioning from concept to product, uncertainties involving the ability of the company to finance research and development activities, potential challenges to or violations of patents, uncertainties regarding the outcome of clinical trials, the company's ability to secure necessary approvals from regulatory agencies, dependence upon third-party vendors, and other risks discussed in the company's periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. By making these forward-looking statements, the company does not intend to update these statements for revisions or changes after the date of this release. ALFACELL CORPORATION Condensed Statements of Operations (Unaudited) Three-Months Ended Nine-Months Ended April 30 April 30 2007 2006 2007 2006 (as restated) (as restated)

Revenues $- $- $- $-

Expenses: Research and development 1,252,811 1,142,793 4,295,574 3,865,887 General and administrative 856,892 606,843 2,844,673 2,239,932 Total expenses 2,109,703 1,749,636 7,140,247 6,105,819 Loss from operations (2,109,703) (1,749,636) (7,140,247) (6,105,819)

Interest income, net 82,142 20,036 303,968 76,064

State tax benefit - - 510,467 317,382

Net loss $(2,027,561) $(1,729,600) $(6,325,812) $(5,712,373)

Net loss per

share - basic and

diluted $(0.04) $(0.05) $(0.14) $(0.15)

Shares used in

computation of net

loss per share: Basic and diluted 45,147,204 37,382,365 44,778,890 36,899,644 Balance Sheet Data: (Unaudited) April 30, July 31, 2007 2006

Cash and cash equivalents $ 6,543,173 $ 11,518,540

Total assets $ 7,302,973 $ 11,826,428

Current liabilities $ 1,644,628 $ 2,593,425

Accumulated deficit $ (89,642,423) $ (83,316,611)

Total stockholders equity $ 5,658,345 $ 9,233,003

Media Contact: Investor Contact:

David Schull or Wendy Lau Andreas Marathovouniotis

Russo Partners Russo Partners

212-845-4271 212-845-4253

David.Schull@russopartnersllc.com Andreas.Marathis@russopartnersllc.com

Wendy.Lau@russopartnersllc.com

Copyright 2007 PR Newswire

from the SOCIALIZED MEDICINE blog

An interesting article about a doctor becoming a patient and the treatment of Mesothelioma: "Don't get mesothelioma in England"

A killer lurks below

By James G. Zumwalt
May 16, 2007

This story has all the elements of a science fiction movie. It takes place in an endless labyrinth of tunnels, within which lurksa silent but deadly killer. This killer generates fear among brave men, causing many to decide not to venture below ground. But some, despite their fear, have no choice but to do so, praying they won't encounter the killer, but well knowing It may already be too late. Sadly, this story is not science fiction. Itis taking place in the bowels of a building in the heart of Washington D.C. whose occupants have at their disposal the only means by which to slay the killer -- yet have failed to do so.

read>> the full Washington Time story

New York Mesothelioma Lawyers File Lawsuit in NY for Rare Asbestos Cancer

Independent studies confirm at least 15 asbestos-related cancer deaths among New York State talc workers, according to attorney who filed the mesothelioma lawsuit.

read the full eMaxHealth.com article