A Phase I Study of Pembrolizumab Immunotherapy plus Cryoablation for People with Inoperable Mesothelioma

Full Title

A Phase 1 Study of Pembrolizumab plus Cryoablation in Unresectable Mesotheliomas

Purpose

In this study, researchers are assessing the addition of cryoablation to pembrolizumab immunotherapy in people with inoperable mesothelioma in the chest or abdomen that continues to grow despite prior treatment.

Pembrolizumab enhances the ability of the immune system to find and kill cancer cells. It is given intravenously (by vein). Cryoablation uses extreme cold applied through the needle into a tumor to kill cancer cells. Some of the killed cancer cells break into pieces that can be recognized and targeted by the immune system. Cryoablation may therefore be particularly useful in combination with drugs such as pembrolizumab that help boost the immune system.

Who Can Join

To be eligible for this study, patients must meet several criteria, including but not limited to the following:

• Participants must have inoperable pleural (in the chest) or peritoneal (in the abdomen) mesothelioma that continues to grow despite prior treatment.
• Prior immunotherapy is allowed. If previous treatment included pembrolizumab, it may not have been the most recent therapy, unless it was last given more than one year before the study treatment.
• Patients must be physically well enough that they are fully ambulatory, capable of all self care, and are capable of all but physically strenuous activities. As an example, they must be well enough that they would be able to carry out office work or light housework.
• This study is for people age 18 and older.

For more information about this study and to ask about eligibility, please call Dr. Michael Offin at 646-608-3763.