How Doctors Treat Mesothelioma
When mesothelioma is diagnosed the doctor may recommend a combination of treatment methods. They might recommend surgery to remove cancerous tissue or treat symptoms. They may also prescribe chemotherapy drugs such as pemetrexed or cisplatin in order to shrink mesothelioma tumours and manage symptoms.
They might also try a procedure called pleurodesis that can make the lung lining scar and bind, stopping the accumulation of fluid. You can receive chemotherapy orally or injected into a vein in order to get all mesothelioma cancer cells.
Surgery
Your doctor may also suggest scans of your chest or abdomen. These tests can help determine if your symptoms are due to mesothelioma or another disease. Your doctor may also request an examination to take a small amount of tissue for laboratory examination. These samples will help determine the type of mesothelioma that you have and help plan your treatment.
The goal of mesothelioma surgery is to eliminate as much of the tumor material as possible. This may cure the cancer in some cases however, it is mostly utilized to ease symptoms and improve quality of life for those suffering from advanced mesothelioma.
Pleural mesothelioma cancer that has developed into the chest cavity's lining can cause fluid buildup in the lungs, making breathing difficult. Surgeons can insert tubes to drain this fluid (pleurodesis) and inject medicine into the chest to prevent it from re-accumulating (pleurectomy/decortication). This surgery will not cure mesothelioma but it can relieve symptoms such as pressure on the lungs.
Mesothelioma that has expanded to the abdomen's lining (peritoneum) can be treated by surgery. The most commonly used procedure is a two-part surgery called hyperthermic and cytoreductive intraperitoneal treatment, or HIPEC. This involves removing both tumors and a portion of the abdominal tissues surrounding it which includes parts of the liver and gallbladder, along with the pancreas as well as stomach.
Your doctor may order tests of pulmonary function prior to mesothelioma surgeries in order to determine how well your lungs function. These tests will let your doctor know if the operation is safe.
Chemotherapy
For those suffering from mesothelioma peritoneal or pleural doctors may prescribe chemotherapy drugs to kill cancer cells in the body. These drugs are administered via the vein or intravenously and are usually used in combination with surgery and/or radiation therapy. Sometimes, they're the only option for patients who can't undergo surgery due to their health.
Doctors usually prescribe a mixture of drugs called pemetrexed (Alimta) and carboplatin or cisplatin to mesothelioma patients. These drugs are administered through IV and kill cancerous cells that grow too quickly. They also prevent tumors from regrowing after surgery or if cancer has already spread.
Patients suffering from mesothelioma receiving chemotherapy should ask their physician how they can deal with possible side effects, such as vomiting and nausea. Patients should tell their doctor about any medications or supplements that they are taking because certain drugs can interact with chemotherapy.
If diagnosed with mesothelioma, patients should consult an expert such as an oncologist to find out more about the treatment options that are available. Anyone considering treatment options should be aware of their objectives, as well as possible side effects and how long they might last.
Doctors may opt for a targeted therapy or another medication to stop tumors growing in patients who have mesothelioma recurrently. The targeted therapies aim to block the blood flow to tumors, ensuring they don't get the nutrients they need. A type of targeted therapy called bevacizumab (Avastin) is often used to treat mesothelioma that has recurred and other cancers, such as lung cancer and pancreatic cancer.
Radiation Therapy
Radiation therapy delivers high-energy X-ray or particle beams directly to mesothelioma tumor cells, causing them to die. By shrinking tumors, it has been shown that radiation therapy can increase the quality of life and extend the survival time for patients suffering from pleural adenocarcinoma. It also prevents mesothelioma cells from replicating and spreading which reduces the chance of repeat incidence. It is most effective when it is used in combination with other treatments, such as chemotherapy and surgery.
Radiation oncologists are typically the ones who deliver mesothelioma treatment. They work with an entire team to ensure that you receive the most effective treatment. Before they administer radiation therapy, they mark the area of your body that they want to target using the machine. They might also utilize immobilization devices or molds to ensure you remain in a certain the correct position during treatment.
During peritoneal mesothelioma treatment , the doctor will be able to monitor your health through video and audio connections. The procedure itself is only a few minutes per session, however the set-up time can last for several hours. You will probably need to attend multiple sessions over several weeks.
A computer program can be used to deliver precise radiation doses in mesothelioma treatment called intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT). It is able to provide better outcomes for patients because it allows radiation oncologists to better concentrate on tumors and to avoid healthy tissue around.
The most commonly used kind of mesothelioma-related radiation is external beam radiation (EBRT). This involves a linear accelerator machine that emits ionizing radiation. Radiation oncologists can target specific regions of the chest or abdomen by using this procedure. They typically apply it prior to or after an extrapleural pneumonectomy (EPP) for pleural mesothelioma. They can also apply it prior to or following pleurectomy with décortication (P/D) which is a lung-sparing procedure for peritoneal msothelioma.
Endobronchial ultrasound-guided needle aspiration
In this test, doctors employ an extremely narrow, flexible tube that is able to look into your lung airways and has an ultrasound probe attached to it. This probe produces computerized 3-D images, highlighting any tumors or lymph nodes that may be present. Doctors then search for abnormalities, such mesothelioma for instance, and take tissue or fluid samples to test them for cancer cells. Doctors may also inject a dye into your blood to highlight the areas they are examining. This will help doctors determine the extent to which mesothelioma is spreading in your body.
This procedure is for confirming a diagnosis of malignant pleural melanoma and determining if you are at a point where surgery is required. It can also be used to determine if your mesothelioma has spread to the lymph nodes, which will help your doctor determine the best course of action for you.
EBUS-TBNA is a combination of endoscopic visualization and high frequency ultrasound imaging to enable the doctor to pinpoint the lymph node lesions that need to be sampled and obtain the cytological samples. Studies have demonstrated that EBUS TBNA is an less invasive and more precise alternative to mediastinoscopy in the staging of MPM.
The sensitivity of EBUS-TBNA was 94.6% and the sensitivity was 100%, in contrast to the 50% sensitivity for the traditional transbronchial needle aspiration alone. The EBUS TBNA procedure has led to an accurate assessment of the underlying lesions, including the diagnosis of sarcoidosis (34 epithelioid 7 biphasic, and 1 sarcomatoid) in all 48 analyzed cases. The sensitivity of EBUS TBNA in identifying metastatic nodal diseases is similar to MRI for this patient population. However, its value is dependent on the accuracy of rapid assessment on site.
Mediastinoscopy
The procedure involves examining the lung area between and behind the breastbone or sternum. Doctors employ mediastinoscopy to determine the presence of pleural illnesses like tuberculosis and sarcoidosis as well as mesothelioma, which is a common occurrence in this area. Once the patient is numb with local anesthesia, doctors place an instrument with a light source called a mediastinoscope in the chest cavity. They then can take tissue samples and check for signs of cancer like enlarged lymph nodes.
Doctors may also employ a needle to remove fluid from the pleura (the lung's lining) to examine it under a microscope. Typically, this procedure occurs after a person experiences symptoms like wheezing or difficulty breathing. This procedure, also known as needle biopsies, is less invasive than surgery to remove mesothelioma.
Our mesothelioma specialists are able to perform mediastinoscopy, a more invasive surgical procedure. In this procedure, a doctor makes a small cut in the neck and inserts a bronchoscope or similar tool into your trachea or lungs to detect any anomalies or lymph nodes that have enlarged. The doctor may collect a sample of tissue and send it to a lab for testing.
A mediastinoscopy is an outpatient procedure which means the patient can go home following the procedure. It is crucial to know the risks of surgery before deciding whether it is the best option for you. This involves serious risks like bleeding, blood-clots in lungs or lung damage, and changes in heart rhythm. The surgical incision could hurt for a few days afterward. The surgeon may also wrap the incision with wound glue or tape-like strips in order to aid in healing.