Mesothelioma Treatments
There are several factors to consider for choosing the right method of treatment
for mesothelioma. Factors like the severity of cancer, its location, the
patient’s age and overall health.
The three standard treatment options for mesothelioma are surgery, radiation
therapy, and chemotherapy. The physician may opt to choose one or combine the
treatments.
Surgery which is the most common treatment for mesothelioma. Before undergoing
surgery however, the patient must do various tests to determine whether the
option of surgery is absolutely safe depending on the condition of the patient
and the spread of the tumor. Two types of surgery, aggressive surgery and
palliative surgery are performed to remove cancer cells affecting the body.
Aggressive surgery is usually performed on younger patients with generally good
health. In this type of surgery the affected organs are removed with the
intention of totally eliminating as much cancer as possible.
Palliative procedures are performed in the later stages of mesothelioma. This is
done to alleviate the symptoms suffered by patients. Palliative surgery includes
removing of fluids from the lungs to relieve loss of breath, this is called
thoracentesis. The removal of fluid from the abdomen is called paracentesis.
Radiation also known as radiotherapy is where high energy x-rays are used to
shrink tumors and kill off cancerous cells in the affected area. Like surgery
there are two methods of radiotherapy. One is through external means, when a
machine emits radiation outside the body. The other way would use plastic tubes
as a source of radiation to directly emit rays on the affected area. In this
method of treatment however, the right dose of radiation that would effectively
removing the tumor is very difficult to determine.
Chemotherapy is the use of anticancer drugs. These drugs are aimed to kill
cancer cells throughout the body. There are two ways to administer chemotherapy
to a patient. One can be done intravenously (IV) or by injecting the drug into
the vein of the patient. The other way is by taking it in the form of a tablet.
As the medicine enters the bloodstream and travels through the body cancer cells
are killed along the way, hopefully.
