The Pacific Mesothelioma Center (PMC) announced the issuance of a U.S. patent for their mesenchymal stem research program. The patent’s inventors Dr. Raymond Wong and Dr. Robert B. Cameron, Scientific Advisor at PMC, Director of the UCLA Comprehensive Mesothelioma Program, and Chief of Thoracic Surgery at the West Los Angeles VA Medical Center. PMC worked in conjunction with Dr. Walid Sabbagh Jr. who brings his breadth of expertise to PMC’s Patent and Grants Advisory Committee.

Mesenchymal stem cells are potent cells found in a variety of tissues, including bone marrow and placenta, that can grow and mature into a variety of different cell types. Since they are not easily recognizable as foreign tissue, the stem cells show enormous potential to being applied in cancer therapy.

According to Dr. Cameron, "After a patient undergoes mesothelioma surgery, much of the tumor is excised, but some cancer cells inevitably remain. To destroy the remaining cancer cells, modified mesenchymal stem cells can be delivered to the exact location where the cancer was surgically removed and destroy any residual cancer cells. This cutting-edge strategy has the potential both to increase the chance of long-term survival and eliminate current treatments with significant side effects, such as radiation and chemotherapy."

Clare Cameron, Executive Director of PMC, states “We are so proud of what we have achieved in such a short time and look forward to the potential that this patent brings to us in treating cancer patients in the future”.