Neoplasma Vol.61, No.4, p.433-438, 2014

Malignant mesothelioma is a rare but highly lethal form of cancer that affects the serosal membranes. Malignant peritoneal mesothelioma (MPM) is the second most common form of malignant mesothelioma (pleural mesothelioma is the most common). The aim of this study was to evaluate prognostic factors influencing the survival of patients with MPM.
A retrospective analysis was performed on 35 patients who were admitted to our hospital between March 2005 and July 2013. The patients’ demographic and clinical data, laboratory results, radiological signs, Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status (PS), and treatment outcomes were evaluated.

The mean age of the 35 patients was 59.0±14.4 years, the mean survival time was 16.2±12.9 months, and the majority of the histopathological types of MPM were epithelial (68.6%).

82.9% of the patients had been exposed to asbestos, and the mean duration of exposure was 28.3±14.5 years.

The most frequent symptoms were abdominal distention/pain, weight loss, dyspnea, and chest pain.

The mean interval between the onset of symptoms and the diagnosis was 4.6±3.3 months.

Platinum-based combination chemotherapy in combination with supportive care was used in the treatment of 68.6% of the patients, while supportive treatment alone was used in the others.

Our results revealed that patients who were >60 years old (p=0.019), who were exposed to asbestos >20 years (p=0.033), who had an ECOG PS of 3 (p=0.000) were more likely to have a poor MPM prognosis.

In conclusion, increased age, duration of environmental asbestos exposure and ECOG PS are important factors that influence the prognosis of MPM patients.