|
Mesothelioma
Treatment
Conventional
Therapies
Conventional
mesothelioma
therapies include surgery, radiation and
chemotherapy. You should keep in mind that
if you choose one course of action for
mesothelioma treatment, you may preclude
other courses. All of your options should
be considered as soon as possible.
Surgery
Depending
on the stage of a mesothelioma, surgery
may be used to remove the cancer and some
of the surrounding tissue. Often, however,
an operation is not appropriate and the
patient may have only minimally invasive
procedures to relieve symptoms. A
thoracentesis, where fluid in the chest is
removed by placing a needle into the chest
cavity, may be done to make a patient more
comfortable. Sometimes talc or an
antibiotic may be injected into the chest
cavity to try to prevent the fluid from
returning. These techniques are successful
in controlling the fluid, at least
temporarily, in as many as 90% of
patients. Because pleural fluid can
compress the lung and cause shortness of
breath, these procedures can help patients
breathe more easily, however, they do not
cure the cancer. In the case of peritoneal
mesothelioma, a needle may be inserted
into the abdomen to drain the fluid.
Similarly, a needle inserted into the
pericardium (sac around the heart) can
drain pericardial fluid and help relieve
circulatory problems. However, draining
this fluid may result in complications.
Sometimes the cancer cells spread along
the needle path, and a tumor nodule may
form under the skin of that area.
Surgery
for mesothelioma may be performed for one
of two reasons: for palliation (to relieve
pain and discomfort caused by the tumor),
or to cure. Palliative surgery is
typically done in cases where the tumor
has already spread beyond the mesothelium
and is difficult to completely remove, or
in cases where the patient is too ill to
tolerate a more extensive operation.
Curative surgery is offered when the
patient is in otherwise good health and
the tumor is thought to be localized and
can be completely removed. Unfortunately,
microscopic spread of cancer cells into
the chest wall and diaphragm are common
even when such spread cannot be detected
by routine tests. Therefore, given the
extent of these operations and their very
limited success, the exact role of surgery
in treating mesothelioma is often
debated.
There
are two types of operations that may be
offered to patients with pleural
mesothelioma: pleurectomy/decortication
and extrapleural pneumonectomy.
Pleurectomy/decortication is usually a
palliative (relieves symptoms without
curing the cancer) operation in cases
where the entire tumor cannot be removed.
It involves removal of the pleura, where
the majority of the tumor is located. It
is effective in controlling effusions
(fluid accumulation) and decreasing the
pain caused by the cancer.
Extrapleural
pneumonectomy is a far more extensive
operation and most often used in cases of
localized mesothelioma. The operation is
technically difficult and performed only
by surgeons in large specialized medical
centers. It involves removing the pleura,
diaphragm, pericardium, and the whole lung
on the side of the tumor. The patient must
be in overall good health with no other
serious illnesses in order to tolerate the
large operation. This operation is
intended to remove all or most of the
cancer and some surrounding tissues as
well.
Surgical
treatment of peritoneal mesothelioma is
often performed either to help relieve
symptoms or to attempt to remove the tumor
from the wall of the abdomen and other
digestive organs. As with pleural
mesothelioma, these tumors are often too
extensive to remove completely. Similar
operations can be performed to remove a
mesothelioma from the pericardium (the sac
around the heart).
 Click
here
to browse through related medical
literature,
articles and abstracts.
Radiation
Therapy
Radiation
therapy uses high-energy x-rays to kill
cancer cells. External beam radiation
therapy uses radiation delivered from
outside the body that is focused on the
cancer. This type of radiation therapy is
often used to treat mesothelioma. These
treatments are much like getting a
diagnostic x-ray except for a longer time.
Brachytherapy involves radioactive
material being placed directly into the
chest or the abdomen at the site of the
mesothelioma. Radiation therapy is
sometimes used as the main treatment of
mesothelioma in some patients, especially
those whose general health is too poor to
undergo surgery. Adjuvant radiation
therapy can be used in addition to surgery
to kill small deposits of cancer that
cannot be seen and removed during surgery.
Palliative radiation therapy can also be
used to ease symptoms of mesothelioma such
as shortness of breath, pain, bleeding,
and difficulty swallowing.
Side
effects of radiation therapy may include
fatigue and mild skin changes that
resemble a sunburn. Often these side
effects are temporary. Radiation may also
make the side effects of chemotherapy
worse. Chest radiation therapy may cause
lung damage and lead to difficulty
breathing and shortness of breath.
Abdominal radiation therapy may cause
nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. If you are
having any of these side effects of
radiation therapy, talk with your doctor
since there are ways to help control these
symptoms.
Click
here
to browse through related medical
literature,
articles and abstracts.
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy
is the use of drugs for treating cancer.
The drugs can be swallowed in pill form or
they can be injected by a needle into a
vein or muscle. Chemotherapy is systemic
therapy. This means that the drug enters
the bloodstream and circulates throughout
the body (through the whole system) to
reach and destroy the cancer cells.
In
treating mesothelioma, these drugs may
also be given intrapleurally (directly
into the chest cavity), or
intraperitoneally (into the abdominal
cavity). Depending on the type and stage
of mesothelioma, chemotherapy may be given
as the primary (main) treatment or as an
adjuvant (addition) to surgery.
Several
anticancer drugs have been used to treat
mesothelioma. The drug most effective when
given alone is doxorubicin (Adriamycin).
Other drugs that may be given alone
include cisplatin and methotrexate. These
anticancer drugs are often given in
combination to try to increase their
effectiveness. Combinations of drugs used
in the treatment of mesothelioma include
methotrexate and vincristine; cisplatin,
vinblastine and mitomycin; cisplatin and
doxorubicin; and doxorubicin,
cyclophosphamide (or ifosfamide) and
cisplatin. Other drugs such as paclitaxel
and irinotecan are currently being studied
to determine their effectiveness in
treating mesothelioma.
Chemotherapy
drugs kill cancer cells but also damage
some normal cells. Therefore, careful
attention must be given to avoiding or
minimizing side effects, which depend on
the specific drugs, the amount taken, and
the length of treatment. Temporary side
effects might include nausea and vomiting,
loss of appetite, loss of hair, and mouth
sores. Because chemotherapy can damage the
blood-producing cells of the bone marrow,
patients may have low blood cell counts.
This can result in an increased risk of
infection (due to a shortage of white
blood cells), bleeding or bruising after
minor cuts or injuries (due to a shortage
of blood platelets), and fatigue or
shortness of breath (due to low red blood
cell counts).
Most
side effects disappear once treatment is
stopped. There are remedies for many of
the temporary side effects of
chemotherapy. For example, antiemetic
drugs can be given to prevent or reduce
nausea and vomiting. If you experience any
side effects, be sure to talk with your
doctor.
Click
here
to browse through related medical
literature,
articles and abstracts.
If
you have any questions regarding treatment
options or your legal rights, please
contact
us.
| 
