Breakthrough in Diagnosis of Mesothelioma Announced at Conference

New technology to help diagnose asbestos-related lung disease was announced at the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization’s annual conference last week. Dr. Michael Harbut, co-director of the National Center for Vermiculite and Asbestos-Related Cancers (NCVAC) at the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute and the Chief of the Center for Occupational and Environmental Medicine, has found a way to better diagnose asbestos related diseases at an earlier stage.

This new development involves taking images on a 64-slice high resolution CT scan and enhancing them using the Vitrea ® imaging software program developed by Vital Images, Inc. The technology allows doctors to visualize lesions that are caused by asbestos exposure in three-dimensional detail at an earlier stage than previous radiographic techniques.

The new approach can allow for earlier detection, a clearer differentiation of patients with lung scarring and other diseases, and possibly increase the “success in the overall diagnosis and treatment of asbestos-related disease,” according to Harbut. The technology could also benefit those dealing with asbestos litigation and reduce cases of fraud because of the clarity and sophistication of the images that can tell which cases were caused by asbestos and which were not.

Exposure to asbestos can lead to a number of fatal diseases including asbestosis and malignant mesothelioma. The illnesses are caused when airborne asbestos fibers are inhaled and become lodged in the soft tissue of the lungs. Due to a long latency period it can take between 20 and 50 years for symptoms to appear, too late for any effective treatment.

This research breakthrough is yet another contribution of NCVAC researchers who previously discovered the presence of osteopontin in mesothelioma tumors and the use of soluble mesothelin-related peptide in screening for mesothelioma.