Mesothelioma Treatment

Mesothelioma Treatment: Physician Therapies

There are a couple of different mesothelioma treatment options that are available to people that have been diagnosed with mesothelioma, including conventional therapies, radiotherapy or radiation therapy and also chemotherapy.

Treatment of malignant forms of mesothelioma through conventional therapies combined with chemotherapy or radiation is especially successful in stage I and stage II cancers and has proven to be successful approximately 74.6 % of the time in extending the life of the patient by five years or more.

This is a period that is known as remission. The percentage may decrease or increase based on the date of discovery of the mesothelioma cancer as well as the stage of the development of the malignant mesothelioma cancer.

The course or path that the physician decides to take when it comes to mesothelioma treatment is going to be determined primarily by what stage of development the cancer is currently in at the point of diagnosis.

This is unlike the traditional treatment for cancer such as cancer surgery by itself, because surgery on its own has only proven itself to be 16.3 percent likely to extend the lifespan of the patient by five years or more.

The clinical behavior of the cancer's malignancy is affected by a number of different factors, including the continuous surface of the mesothelial pleural cavity which tends to favor local metastasis rather than exfoliating of cells, as well as invasion to the underlying tissues as well as other organs within the lining of the lungs or the pleural cavity, and also the extremely long period of latency that exists between the exposure to asbestos and the development of mesothelioma.

Mesothelioma Treatment Options

Some of the mesothelioma treatment options that are available and commonly turned to for treating this disease including radiation therapy or radiotherapy, chemotherapy and also surgery.

Surgery has proven to be disappointing by itself, but it can be successful when used in conjunction with other therapies such as chemotherapy and radiation therapy for example. The most common surgeries involve removing the lining of the chest.

Radiation therapy is common for patients who have the disease on a localized basis, especially those who can receive radiation therapy as a consolidative treatment following a radical surgery like the removal of the chest lining.

Mesothelioma tends to be resistant to radiation therapy when used by itself, but in conjunction with chemotherapy and surgery, radiotherapy can be extremely effective. Delivering both radiation therapy and chemotherapy following surgery has allowed for many patients to extend their survival rates long beyond 5 years following diagnosis and treatment.

Chemotherapy As A Mesothelioma Treatment

Chemotherapy is the only known treatment for mesothelioma that has been proven to improve survival rates on its own rather than in conjunction with radiotherapy and surgery.

Although chemotherapy has its own side effects to deal with, it has proven itself capable of helping to improve the quality of life of people who are dealing with mesothelioma, making it one of the best mesothelioma treatment options.

Still, chemotherapy as a treatment option for mesothelioma is actually best when combined with surgery and radiation therapy and other types of therapies such as gene therapy and immunotherapy. A combined approach is always the best approach to take in terms of mesothelioma treatment.