Members of the mesothelioma treatment team at the University of Maryland Medical Center — Joseph Friedberg, MD; Melissa Culligan, RN, MS; and Erica Glass, NP — discuss the following topics:
- What mesothelioma patients need to know and understand about the COVID-19 pandemic.
- COVID-19’s impact on treatment and the University of Maryland
- Are mesothelioma consultations still happening? Yes.
- Is treatment available? Yes on some treatment.
- Is clinical trial participation available? No new trials are starting right now. Those who are already enrolled in trials are encouraged to do telemedicine check-ups and not in-patient visits. Otherwise, patients should keep in touch with their medical team regarding clinical trial participation.
- Is surgery available? No.
- University of Maryland’s innovative steps to continue its tumor board via Zoom.
[Our treatment team] fully recognizes and is very sensitive to the fact that if someone has cancer, especially mesothelioma, for them, this is a more significant problem and a greater threat than [coronavirus]. If someone has a problem, it is actually easier for us to arrange a visit now. Please do not hesitate to reach out.
Joseph Friedberg, MD
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This MesoTV interview was made possible by the support of sponsors who have stepped up during this difficult time to ensure that we can continue serving the mesothelioma community. Please take note of them at the beginning of the video: Novocure; Belluck & Fox, LLP; University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC); Vogelzang Law; and Merrill Lynch.
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MesoTV is the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation’s recorded video series covering pertinent conversations impacting the mesothelioma community. You can learn more at curemeso.org/mesotv.
