Latest mesothelioma research findings highlighted in leading scientific publication

July 11, 2019

HONOLULU – The latest data and a comprehensive overview of mesothelioma research was released highlighting ways to improve prevention, early detection, and treatment of the disease.

Published in the peer-reviewed journal with the highest impact factor among all disciplines of science and medicine, Ca: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians, Mesothelioma: Scientific clues for prevention, diagnosis, and therapy on the September cover of the Journal highlights the discovery made by University of Hawaiʻi Cancer Center Researcher and study’s lead author, Michele Carbone, and collaborators that specific gene mutations cause mesothelioma and other cancers, and how asbestos and the mutation of the BAP1 gene interact in this process.

“I am proud of our world-renowned mesothelioma team in Hawai‘i. Since I discovered that mesothelioma is caused by gene and environment interactions, it has been a great model to study how genes and the environment interact in cancer causation, and we are developing new therapies to treat cancer with BAP1 mutations” said Carbone.

Novel ongoing clinical trials targeting BAP1 in mesothelioma are being reviewed at the International Mesothelioma Conference in July 2019 in New York, chaired by Carbone and sponsored by the International Association to Study Lung Cancer (IASLC).

Carbone was elected into The Academy of Europe in the Category of Life Sciences Section Cell and Developmental Biology in July 2019. “We can find better ways to prevent and treat mesothelioma. We have already done a lot in improving early detection and survival,” said Carbone.