Mesothelioma Cancer Treatment

What is Mesothelioma
Mesothelioma is a cancer affecting the membrane lining of the lungs, abdomen, and in rare cases the heart. It is a cancer that is not very common, and is almost always caused due to asbestos inhalation or ingestion.

From the time of inhalation or ingestion, mesothelioma takes approximately 30 to 40 years to develop and show its effects / signs / symptoms. This is one of the prime reasons that mesothelioma is mostly seen in older patients, mostly male.

Even though not very common, mesothelioma is one of the most fatal, aggressive, and painful of all cancers.

Different Types of Mesothelioma
There are three types of mesothelioma.

-- Pleural mesothelioma
-- Peritoneal mesothelioma
-- Pericardial mesothelioma

Mesothelioma that occurs in the tissue that surrounds the lungs is known as pleural mesothelioma. This is the most common form of mesothelioma. Over 80% of those diagnosed with mesothelioma suffer from pleural mesothelioma.

Mesothelioma that occurs in the tissue that surrounds the abdomen is known as peritoneal mesothelioma.

Mesothelioma that occurs in the tissue that surrounds the heart is known as pericardial mesothelioma. This is the rarest from of mesothelioma.

Signs and Symptoms of Mesothelioma
Mesothelioma signs and symptoms could take as long as 30 to 40 years to surface after initial asbestos inhalation.

The symptoms of mesothelioma will depend on what type of mesothelioma it is.

Signs and symptoms of pleural mesothelioma could include one or more of the following.

-- Shortness of breath that keeps on increasing as the cancer progresses
-- Difficulty in breathing caused by lung compression
-- Mild to severe constant pain in the chest
-- Lungs are surrounded by excess fluid
-- Fatigue caused without any apparent reason
-- Blood traces in the sputum
-- Sudden unexplained weight loss

Signs and symptoms of peritoneal mesothelioma could include one or more of the following.

-- Constant pain (mild to excessive) in the abdomen
-- Swelling of the abdomen
-- Sudden noticeable change in bowel movement with constant diarrhea or constipation
-- Tissue lumps in the abdomen
-- Sudden unexplained weight loss

Mesothelioma Treatment
Treatment of mesothelioma will depend on what type of mesothelioma it is, at what stage has the cancer been diagnosed, and the patients age and health.

The most common type of treatment for mesothelioma is surgery, followed by radiation therapy and chemotherapy. Depending on the situation a combination of these treatments are used.

Surgery for Mesothelioma
The most common treatment for mesothelioma is surgery. Depending on the spread of the cancer, the surgeon could remove a part of the lining of the chest or the abdomen and also some surrounding tissue. When the cancer has spread to a lung, the surgeon may remove part of one side of the lung in an operation known as pneumonectomy. In rare cases it becomes necessary to remove a part of the muscle below the lungs (diaphragm) which helps in the process of breathing.

Pleural mesothelioma can cause a fluid buildup in the chest which makes breathing very difficult. The surgeon in this case will insert a catheter into the chest to drain out the fluid. Medication could also be injected into the chest to stop / reduce further fluid buildup.

Radiation for Mesothelioma
Radiation therapy (radiotherapy) makes use of high-energy rays to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors. Radiation can be given through a radiation machine (known as external radiation therapy), or by putting certain chemicals that produce radiation through thin tubes in the area affected by the cancer (known as internal radiation therapy).

Chemotherapy for Mesothelioma
Chemotherapy makes use of anticancer drugs to kill cancer cells throughout the body. The most common type is an injection given intravenously. Trials are on to find out the efficacy of injecting these drugs directly into the affected area.

Combination Therapy for Mesothelioma
A combination of surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy is used in combination therapy. This could prove to be more beneficial, but is very harsh on the body, and is not suitable for everyone. Combination therapy is used only on patients who are young (in their 30s) and healthy, and can withstand the effects of this treatment.

Which Mesothelioma Treatment to Opt For
The treatment best suited will be decided by the surgeon. It will depend on the patients age, health, location and spread of the cancer.

In a maximum of cases the cancer is detected when it is too late for a full cure. The patient will usually not survive more than 12 to 18 months after diagnosis. The surgeon will focus on ways to remove / destroy the cancer cells so as to slowdown further spread of the cancer.

There are certain other treatments that are available and currently undergoing clinical trials. Your surgeon can guide you on these new techniques and considering all the factors you could decide on a certain treatment. Even though these new treatments use the latest technologies currently available, a full treatment is not guaranteed. Using these new treatments, surgeons are trying to get the survival ratio after diagnosis up from the current 12 to 18 months, to approximately 5 to 10 years.

Participating in these clinical trials could possibly help patients live longer, at the same time allowing surgeons to understand the disease better and possibly find a total cure for mesothelioma in the near future.