May Symposium will Feature Top Mesothelioma Experts
Los Angeles, California - A May 12, 2012 symposium, to be held in the coastal town of Santa Monica, California, will bring together top doctors and scientists, all of whom are involved in the research and treatment of malignant pleural mesothelioma, a cancer for which the only known cause is exposure to asbestos.
According to a press release by the Pacific Meso Center of the Pacific Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, the symposium will be led by Dr. Robert Cameron, Director of the UCLA Mesothelioma Comprehensive Research Program and Chief of Thoracic Surgery at the West Los Angeles VA Medical Center. Cameron has long been a proponent pleurectomy/decortication surgery for the treatment of the pleural type of mesothelioma.
The meeting will include experts from around the country as well as around the world and is open primarily to doctors currently involved in the treatment of patients with mesothelioma. However, the Pacific Meso Center has also opened the meeting to others, including medical students, nurses, and victims of pleural mesothelioma and their families.
"This symposium brings the best scientific and medical minds together to advance the treatment of mesothelioma," said Dr. Cameron. "Research and practice over the past several years have continued to evolve, working to improve cancer outcomes without unnecessarily sacrificing the affected lung. Clearly, it is best for the patient to treat mesothelioma as a chronic illness while preserving the function of both lungs."
This is the second symposium of its kind sponsored by the Pacific Meso Center. The first involved experts from the UK who came to California to speak about a clinical trial on radical surgery for pleural mesothelioma patients. The conclusion, the press release explains, was that the extrapleural pneumonectomy is no longer necessary for victims of the pleural form of the disease.
