DOCTORS are using talcum powder as an unlikely weapon in the war against mesothelioma, the condition known as the Swindon Disease because of the hundreds of former railway workers in the town struck down by it.

The powder is one of a raft of new treatments that are being pioneered at Princess Margaret Hospital to help ease the suffering of the growing numbers of people who have been exposed to deadly asbestos fibres.

Swindon has been chosen as one of the centres for a national trial involving 62 hospitals because of the high numbers of people who caught the cancer after a career at the town's railway works.

The disease is a cancer of the lining of the lung and chest doctors use sterile medical talc to treat fluid that builds up in the lungs of patients.

Dr Andrew Leonard, a chest consultant at PMH, said: "The cancer causes pain on one side of the chest and fluid can build up and causes breathlessness.

"With modern techniques we can relieve much of the pain and breathlessness. A small telescope can be put into the chest to take samples and we can stop the fluid build up with injections of sterile talcum powder. The talc acts as a kind of glue and stops the fluid returning once it has been drained away."

The talc therapy is being pioneered in Swindon as part of a trial by the Medical Research Council and the British Thoracic Society to compare chemotherapy with other treatments.

PMH surgeons can also perform an operation, called a cordotomy, which cuts the pain nerves from the chest, as well as administer new powerful drugs

It is thought that about half of the 10 mesothelioma patients treated at the hospital each year will take part in the trial, based on how advanced their symptoms are. The number of sufferers is likely to rise in future years as more former railway workers who were exposed to asbestos dust fall victim.

The work at PMH has been welcomed by Sylvia Farrell, whose 67-year-old husband Mike was struck down by mesothelioma two years ago after contracting the disease from his time working in the railway works as a young man.

He went to New Orleans looking for alternative treatment after being told by doctors in Bath that there was nothing they could do.

Mrs Farrell, who now lives near Bristol, said she is convinced the gene therapy he received helped prolong his life.

She said: "These new treatments at PMH sound like a great idea. Anything that helps to relieve the suffering of people with this terrible disease has got to be a good thing. It is about time more attention was paid to the victims of mesothelioma because the number of people showing symptoms is going to peak over the next decade."

Sister Jane Gray, a hospital Macmillan nurse, who has looked after and supported many of Swindon's mesothelioma sufferers and their families said: "Mesothelioma does not respond well to the usual types of cancer treatment, such as surgery and radiotherapy. But we are able to effectively relieve the symptoms in most of our patients.

"New drugs and techniques are now available that are much more effective than a few years ago. The good news about the trial is that it may lead to even more ways of improving the quality of life of our patients in future."

Internet Links: www.mesoinfo.com

Our appeal

THE Evening Advertiser has launched a £10,000 campaign to create a memorial garden for the victims of the Swindon Disease.

We want to create an oasis where the people who died from exposure from asbestos dust can be remembered. More than £8,000 has been raised so far.

It is easy to give to our appeal. Simply send a cheque to: Swindon Disease, Evening Advertiser Newsdesk, 100 Victoria Road, Old Town, Swindon, SN1 3BE. Cheques must be made payable to 'Swindon Disease Memorial Fund', and we will publish the names of all those who give.