Cutting-Edge Research to Be Presented at 5th Annual International Symposium on Lung-Sparing Therapies for Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma in Santa Monica

LOS ANGELES, March 31, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- On May 2, 2015 global experts on malignant pleural mesothelioma will convene in Santa Monica, CA at the 5th Annual International Symposium on Lung-Sparing Therapies for Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma (MPM), a rare form of cancer that results from exposure to asbestos and commonly affects the lining of the chest– the pleura. The event is co-hosted by UCLA and the Pacific Mesothelioma Center (PMC).

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150330/195397

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150330/195398LOGO

The Symposium is geared towards physicians and offers continuing medical education (CME) credit. It will also provide up-to-date information on mesothelioma for medical students, nurses and other healthcare professionals, as well as mesothelioma patients, their families and other interested parties. Topics will cover: Surgery for Mesothelioma After Radiation Therapy, The Spectrum of Radiation Therapy, Post-Operative Tomotherapy, Transition from EPP to P/D: One Surgeon's Experience, as well as Immunotherapy, Cancer Stem Cells and more.

The Symposium will be led by Robert B. Cameron, MD, FACS, Director of the UCLA Mesothelioma Comprehensive Research Program and Chief of Thoracic Surgery at the West Los Angeles VA Medical Center. The roster of distinguished international faculty at the Symposium will include Marc de Perrot, MD, MSc, of Toronto Mesothelioma Research General Hospital; J. Andrea McCart, MD, MSc, FRCS (C), of University of Toronto; Walter Weder MD, of University Hospital in Zurich, Switzerland; Olga Olevsky, MD, of David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA; Linda Reinstein, President/CEO and Co-Founder Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization and other local experts.

"This event highlights the most promising medical advances in the treatment of mesothelioma as well as promising new research," said Dr. Cameron. "Experts will discuss methods of surgical removal including the shift from Extrapleural Pneumonectomy (EPP) to lung-sparing procedures at some of the most prominent centers in the world, as well as the findings from the Surgery for Mesothelioma After Radiation Therapy (SMART) trial. One whole session will be devoted to the various radiation therapy techniques and which ones represent potential breakthroughs for the management of patients with MPM."

The Symposium is supported by: Worthington & Caron, P.C., Eli Lily & Company and the International Association of Heat & Frost Insulators.

Early Bird tickets can be purchased before April 17 online at http://www.cme.ucla.edu/courses/. For more information, including the opportunity to be a sponsor of this year's Symposium, please contact UCLA at (310) 794-2620 or call Clare Cameron at the Pacific Mesothelioma Center at Pacific Heart, Lung, Blood Institute at (310) 478-4678.   

About Us: Established in 2002, the Pacific Heart, Lung & Blood Institute is a 501(c)(3) non-profit institution. The PMC, a division of the PHLBI, is focused on the treatment and prevention of malignant pleural mesothelioma. The PMC serves a growing number of mesothelioma victims by supporting the nation's first-of-its-kind research lab, which provides laboratory-to-the bedside research that improves mesothelioma victims' lives and longevity. www.PacificMesotheliomaCenter.org

SOURCE Pacific Mesothelioma Center