As with any cancer, treatment for Mesothelioma depends on the location of the cancer, the progression of the illness, the age as well as state of health of the patient.
It is the oncologist who focuses on the illness who will pick the line of treatment. The illness is difficult to treat and in most cases the prognosis is poor. Treatment options include:
1. If the diagnosis is done in the early stages surgical procedure may be recommended to remove all cancerous tissues. This means thoracoscopy, VATS or video assisted thoracic surgical procedure, mediastinoscopy (used for staging), or laproscopy. Often, doctors will advise palliative procedures like chest tube drainage and pleurodesis, thoracoscopy and pleurodesis, pleuroperitonial shunt, or pleurectomy, which treat the signs of mesothelioma than the illness.
2. Radiation is prescribed aggressively for mesothelioma patients and is often given in combination with surgical procedure or in order to control signs, palliatively. Research on using radiation therapy using implants or UV light therapy is in progress as traditional radiation therapy damages surrounding healthy tissue.
3. Chemotherapy is an option and around 12-20% of patients reply to the drugs. Anti-cancer drugs damage cancer cells and prevent their spread. In mesothelioma, chemotherapy is not thought about to be healing. The objective is to prevent spread of the disease; shrink the tumor prior to surgical procedure, known as neoadjuvant therapy; to annihilate any remains of the tumor in the body post surgery; and to relieve pain and other discomfort, palliative chemotherapy. Specialists recommend prescribing premetrexed along with cisplastin. These drugs have shown positive results and this is now standard take care of Mesothelioma not treatable by surgical procedure.
4. Biological therapy using interleukin 2.
5. Immunotherapy where the body’s own immune method is stimulated to fight the illness. Biological response modifiers, BRMs, are used in treatment. These enhance the functions of the immune system; regulate metabolic reactions that promote growth of cancers; adjust cancer cell division; block or reverse processes that lead to formation of cancers; and prevent spread of cancer.
6. Gene therapy, where attempts are made to correct the gene sequence that causes the cancer. This is of three kinds, replacement gene therapy and knockout gene therapy.
7. Administration of lovastatin, a cholesterol lowering drug.
8. Photodynamic treatment where a photosensitive medication is activated using a laser. This is done in the work of the surgical removal of cancerous tissues.
9. Draining of liquid in the chest or abdominal cavity followed by introduction of medications in to the cavity to prevent liquid accumulation is done for patients who have uncontrolled liquid accumulation and intense discomfort stemming from it.
10. Combination therapy or Trimodal therapy which means surgical procedure accompanied by radiation and chemotherapy.
Often, complementary medicines are also used. Termed to be holistic this sort of treatment focuses on a patient’s physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual well being.
In the case of Mesothelioma which is untreatable one can opt for clinical trials of new treatments that are in progress in several research laboratories and centers. The best advice on the line of treatment would be that recommended by the oncologist or physician.
