Mesothelioma Treatments: What Are My Options?

Clinical studies for the treatment of malignant mesothelioma is very active and no treatment has not been entirely successful, there are various treatments available for individuals diagnosed with the disease. There are three types of standard therapies used to treat malignant mesothelioma which include: surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy.

Operation
Surgery for malignant mesothelioma are divided into several sub, specifically designed to restrict the disease to people with certain diseases.

Extrapleural pneumonectomy is a severe form of operation in which the whole lung and part of the chest wall, diaphragm, and part or all of the sac around the heart removed.

local excision is a form of operations that target and eliminate cancer and a limited number of healthy tissue around the cancer area.

Pleurectomy and decortication to remove part of the envelope of the lungs and lining the chest and the outside of the lungs.

Pleurodesis operation is a separate technology for using a mixture of chemicals and / or drugs to create an intentional scar between the layers of the pleura. Post-surgery, the space created by the scar must be drained using a catheter or chest tube and then filled with a chemical that prevents the accumulation of fluid in the pleural cavity.

Radiation
The main second medical technique used to oppose the development of malignant mesothelioma is radiation. Radiation therapy, applied to a malignant mesothelioma using the same basic technology as other forms of medical radiation because the technique uses high energy X-rays to kill cancer cells. This process is divided into two broad categories:

external radiation therapy is a technique in which a machine sends radiation flow is directed at a particular body part, thereby killing cancer cells in their areas of jurisdiction.

internal radiation therapy, however, do not use an external machine, but instead of needles, seeds and catheters to place radioactive substance directly on or near the cancer. Although the application of appropriate methods will of course depend on the type and stage of disease, which is constant in this category is that the goal is to get the radiation is placed directly into the cancerous area and, do, provide more focused and directed assay.

Chemotherapy
Treatment of malignant mesothelioma is the third standard chemotherapy. Chemotherapy uses drugs that target cancer cells and prevent them from dividing and thus prevent their growth.

In systemic chemotherapy, the drug can be given orally or by injection, but the goal is to reach cancer cells through the circulatory system of his own body. In regional chemotherapy, the drug is placed directly over the target area. And finally, a combination chemotherapy involving the use of two or more anticancer drugs can be administered orally or by injection.

Malignant mesothelioma is a disease that is difficult for anyone to bear, however, to educate themselves about the options available is an important step to make this process easier to manage.