Mesothelioma is a deadly cancer that develops through exposure to asbestos. Treatment for mesothelioma depends on various factors such as where the cancer is located, the actual stage of the disease, the patient's age, and the patient's general health. The most common and standard treatment options used are surgery, radiation therapy and chemotherapy. In a few cases all these treatment options are combined. There is no cure for mesothelioma, unless the affected part can be removed by an operation. Surgery is a common treatment type for mesothelioma. In surgery, the entire lining of the chest or the abdomen is removed, along with a few of the surrounding tissues. Pneumonectomy is a kind of operation which involves the removal of the lung in the disease of pleural mesothelioma. In few cases, a part of the diaphragm - the muscle below the lungs which helps in breathing - is also removed. Radiation therapy or radiotherapy uses high-energy rays to kill these malignant cancerous cells; it shrinks the tumors that are developed. The radiotherapy is used to affect the cancerous cells only in the treated area. Mesothelioma treatment is done in two different radiations such as external radiation and internal radiation. External radiation uses a machine to radiate into the cancer cells. The process where thin plastic tubes are generally used to radiate into the area where the cancer cells are found is referred as internal radiotherapy. Chemotherapy is a kind of treatment which involves the use of anticancer drugs to kill the cancerous cells in the entire body. These drugs, which are used as the treatment for mesothelioma, are injected into the vein. Use of a needle or a thin tube used to drain the fluid which has developed in the region of chest or abdomen is used by the doctors for relieving the symptoms and control pain. Thoracentesis is the procedure used to remove the fluid from the chest. Paracentesis is the procedure which is used to remove the fluid from the abdominal region. Giving drugs through the tubes can prevent the accumulation of fluid in the chest. Surgery and radiotherapy are used to relieve the symptoms in the treatment process. |
