悪性胸膜中皮腫の治療 : 新しい取り組みを交えて

Malignant pleural mesothelioma（MPM）arises from the mesothelial cells that line the thoracic cavity．MPM grows aggressively with dissemination in the thoracic cavity and frequently produces malignant pleural effusion．Although a surgical resection at an early stage is the only a curative therapeutic modality, the majority of MPM patients are found at an advanced stage．In addition, MPM is refractory to conventional chemotherapy and radiotherapy, and it also has a poor prognosis．Recently, it has been shown that palliative chemotherapy with pemetrexed and cisplatin is beneficial for MPM patients．Development of novel molecular targeted therapy is essential for further improvement of the prognosis of this disease.

四国医学雑誌 : http://www.tokushima-u.ac.jp/med/research/shikoku_acta_medica.html