Mesothelioma Information

As with any disease or health condition, mesothelioma researchers have, over time, collected statistical information about mesothelioma. These statistics can help us learn about the proclivities of the disease and its incidence and potentially help future patients as we learn more about mesothelioma.

How Common is Mesothelioma?

New cases of mesothelioma are diagnosed in between 2,500 and 3,000 Americans each year. These numbers, while significant, would indicate that mesothelioma is still a relatively rare disease, though incidence is expected to rise in the next decade according to projections.

What is the Typical Age at Diagnosis?

The first diagnosis of mesothelioma typically occurs in men and women between the ages of 50 and 70 years. Mesothelioma patients, certainly, have been diagnosed at ages younger than 50 and older than 70, but diagnoses for those age groups are considered statistical anomalies.

Does Mesothelioma Occur in a Particular Sex or Racial Demographic More than Another?

Mesothelioma Charities

There are a number of mesothelioma research initiatives underway that are funded not only by medical and educational institutions, but also by charities dedicated to the defeat of mesothelioma and cancer in general. Research in this area is still evolving but great advances are being made, in large part, due to the support of these organizations. Below are a few of the better-known mesothelioma research initiatives and charities.

Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation

The Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation, more commonly referred to as MARF, is a non-profit national organization dedicated to lobbying for and funding mesothelioma research initiatives. In addition to funding initiatives and research projects, MARF also seeks to connect patients with cancer specialists and mesothelioma programs at the nation’s leading cancer centers. Another tier of MARF’s mission is advocacy for mesothelioma patients in the form of federal and state-level lobbying efforts.

Alimta the first mesothelioma chemotherapy drug

Alimta® is the very first mesothelioma chemotherapy drug to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat patients suffering from malignant pleural mesothelioma cancer. Also known as Pemetrexed, Alimta® is administered to mesothelioma patients who are unable to undergo mesothelioma surgery to remove cancerous tissue.


Developed in 2000, Alimta® has been hailed as a "huge breakthrough" in treating mesothelioma cancer patients. In clinical trials at Britain's Newcastle Freeman Hospital, Alimta® was administered to 27 British mesothelioma sufferers, most of whom were former construction workers. The use of Alimta® resulted in a rapid improvement of their symptoms. Trial leader Professor Hilary Calvert stated that half of the patients experienced a decrease in tumor size and that most of the patients had marked improvement in their symptoms. Professor Calvert called the trial's findings "the best results I've seen in my career."

Judge Estimates Garlock Sealing Technologies' Mesothelioma Liability at $125 Million

EnPro Industries (NYSE: NPO) announced that Judge George Hodges of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of North Carolina today entered an order estimating the liability for present and future mesothelioma claims against EnPro's Garlock Sealing Technologies LLC (GST) subsidiary at $125 million, consistent with the positions GST put forth at trial.

Judge Hodges's opinion follows the completion of an estimation trial held in his court during July and August of 2013. The judge's estimate is for mesothelioma claims only. Additional amounts may be necessary to resolve other disease claims and for trust administration costs. The opinion can be found under the investor relations tab on the EnPro Industries website (www.enproindustries.com).

Treatment of Mesothelioma

The prognosis for malignant mesothelioma remains disappointing, although there have been some modest improvements in prognosis from newer chemotherapies and multimodality treatments. Treatment of malignant mesothelioma at earlier stages has a better prognosis, but cures are exceedingly rare. Clinical behavior of the malignancy is affected by several factors including the continuous mesothelial surface of the pleural cavity which favors local metastasis via exfoliated cells, invasion to underlying tissue and other organs within the pleural cavity, and the extremely long latency period between asbestos exposure and development of the disease. The histological subtype and the patient's age and health status also help predict prognosis. The epithelioid histology responds better to treatment and has a survival advantage over sarcomatoid histology.