SANTA BARBARA, Calif., Aug. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- The Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation (Meso Foundation), the national nonprofit dedicated to eradicating mesothelioma (meso) as a life-ending disease, announced today that illustrious cancer researcher, Nicholas J. Vogelzang, M.D., F.A.C.P., has become the new chair of the Foundation's Board of Directors. Dr. Vogelzang is the director of Nevada Cancer Institute (NVCI) and formerly served as the director of the University of Chicago's Cancer Center. He has intense interest in advancing treatments for meso, a diffuse, solid tumor of the lining of the lungs, heart, or abdomen caused by asbestos. He has been involved in a number of the most significant meso clinical trials, and led the clinical trial of Alimta, the first drug ever approved by the FDA specifically for meso.