The Latest Treatment For Mesothelioma
Combination therapies, including radiotherapy, chemotherapy and surgery are used to treat pleural cancer. New treatments have allowed mesothelioma sufferers to live longer and with fewer symptoms.
Targeted therapy drugs inhibit tumor growth by denying cancer cells of oxygen. They also have less effect on healthy cells than other treatments.
Chemotherapy
In chemotherapy the use of drugs is to eliminate cancerous cells. Doctors can inject chemotherapy directly into the tumor using tubes connected to a pump or into a vein using intravenous chemotherapy. Doctors may use systemic chemotherapy to shrink the tumor prior to surgery or to reduce the chance of mesothelioma coming back after surgery.
Traditional mesothelioma treatments can help patients live longer with greater quality of life. They are not able to cure the cancer. Doctors have developed new therapies in recent years that improve survival. These emerging mesothelioma treatments include immunotherapy, vaccine therapy, and gene therapy.
Mesothelioma is a kind of lung cancer. A person's risk of developing this type of cancer is based on the amount of exposure to asbestos and the kind of mesothelioma they suffer from.
Malignant pleural melanoma is caused by the inhalation of asbestos fibers. It occurs most often in the lung's lining and can cause a variety of symptoms.
A mesothelioma lawsuit can assist victims in receiving the compensation they need to pay for medical expenses and other losses. However, they must make sure that their lawyer has experience in this type of litigation. A mesothelioma lawyer can also examine treatment plans to ensure best results. A lawyer can check, for instance, that the doctor treating a patient has experience in treating mesothelioma. They can also verify whether the doctor has a license to practice in the state that mesothelioma patients reside in.
Radiation
Mesothelioma treatment has advanced a considerable amount in the last several decades. Numerous new treatments now extend survival and reduce symptoms. The latest treatments could even lead to someday a cure.
Doctors conduct a series tests to determine the type and stage of mesothelioma. These tests also show how much the cancer has spread from its initial site. The mesothelioma staging is based on several factors, including the location of the tumors within your body and whether they have spread. Your doctor will determine an appropriate stage from I to IV based on your particular situation.
If your doctor determines that radiation treatment is the best option for you, he'll make use of a device known as a linear accelerator, to give beams of radiation to fight cancer. These machines are situated at the end of a tube that goes through your chest or abdominal area. They can target tumors and deliver radiation in small doses over a certain time.
The addition of radiation to chemotherapy and surgery improves outcomes. One study showed peritoneal mesothelioma patients who received neoadjuvant cisplatin/pemetrexed, extended extrapleural pneumonectomy (EPP) and postoperative radiotherapy had a median survival of 14.8 years.
Surgery
Many patients suffering from malignant mesothelioma undergo surgery to remove the tumor. In certain cases it can be a cure for the cancer. If the tumor isn't surgically removed however, doctors may use other methods to ease the patient's discomfort and manage symptoms.
In the past, chemotherapy could help prolong the life of patients suffering from mesothelioma. Prior to the introduction of more modern treatments, the most efficient treatment was a combination of pemetrexed with cisplatin. These newer medications are referred to as targeted therapies, and they treat specific vulnerabilities in cancer cells.
Recent research shows that immunotherapy may also aid in ensuring that mesothelioma patients have a longer life span. Immunotherapy is an approach that makes use of drugs to influence the patient's immune system in order to identify and eliminate cancerous cells.
Checkpoint inhibitors, such as pembrolizumab, also known as Keytruda has been approved by the FDA for mesothelioma. Doctors may give these drugs prior to surgery (called neoadjuvant therapy) or after the procedure to help patients feel more comfortable.
Mesothelioma isn't easy to treat, and a cure isn't always guaranteed. Ask your doctor if they any clinical trials that are testing new treatments in case you've been diagnosed with mesothelioma. You can improve your quality-of-life and receive better care by participating in a clinical trial for mesothelioma. There are also support groups online or at local hospitals. Alternative and complementary therapies can also help to control mesothelioma-related symptoms, like breathing problems. You shouldn't discontinue regular medical care due to these treatments.
Immunotherapy
Immunotherapy is a technique to make use of the body's immune system to fight cancer. It is now a major component of treatment for cancer and is utilized in conjunction with chemotherapy and surgery. The FDA has approved the immunotherapy drugs pembrolizumab as well as nivolumab for mesothelioma, and there are more options available through clinical trials. These treatments, also referred to as checkpoint inhibitors, block tumor cells' ability to activate their signaling pathway and prevent them from interacting with any other cells.
The most frequent mesothelioma surgeries are extrapleural pneumonectomy (EPP) and pleurectomy with decortication (P/D). During epithelioid mesothelioma treatment , a doctor removes a part of the lung's lining as well as the chest cavity, diaphragm, and any lymph nodes affected by mesothelioma. P/D is like EPP, except that doctors remove a small portion of the pericardium as well as the entire lung.
Cryotherapy is a new treatment for mesothelioma which uses freezing temperatures to destroy cancerous cells. In a study from 2020, this treatment decreased chest pain for patients with mesothelioma. It is less invasive and has less side effects than surgery. A new mesothelioma therapy involves the introduction of a modified gene to the body to suppress tumor growth. Gene therapy has shown promise in treating patients who aren't qualified for surgery. TTFields, which use gentle electrical stimulation to slow the growth of tumors, is another promising mesothelioma treatment that was recently approved by the FDA for patients suffering from unresectable pleural melanoma. This therapy can also be utilized in conjunction with post-surgical radiation.
Gene therapy
Researchers have created a variety of new kinds of gene therapy to help with mesothelioma treatment. These treatments target specific DNA mutations cancer cells have to decrease the effectiveness of chemotherapy treatments or immunotherapy.
Some of these studies employed genetically modified viruses that are designed to deliver a gene to mesothelioma cancer cells. This gene is a part of the cell that produces proteins. When it is delivered to mesothelioma tumors, it stops them from producing proteins, which allows cancer cells to expand. These viruses have been combined with other mesothelioma treatments such as radiation and chemotherapy.
Other mesothelioma treatment options involve targeting the p53 gene using an specialized drug that can repair the damaged version of this gene. This will allow the p53 gene work properly to help to regulate the behavior of cancer. The p53 gene is one of the most important genes in preventing mesothelioma.
A few mesothelioma gene therapy trials have produced some promising results. One study revealed that the median survival rate for mesothelioma patients treated with a special type of gene therapy was 23.9 months. Mesothelioma gene therapy is still experimental, and if you are interested in this treatment option, you should discuss it with your mesothelioma specialist. Some of the risks involved with gene therapy include the possibility that if a new DNA gets inserted into the wrong spot in the genome, it could cause cancer. The new genes could also cause damage to healthy cells and even death.
P53 restorative drugs
Gene therapy is a newer treatment that seeks to add genes to cancer cells in order to make them more susceptible to chemotherapy and other treatments. In one variant, doctors inject modified viruses into cancer cells to cause them to grow slower or die.
Scientists have also found ways to transform mutant p53 back to its wild-type form to perform its normal tasks. They have studied thousands of compounds to identify ones that can do this, and a few have been successful.
A new treatment option for mesothelioma is blocking blood vessel growth around tumors. This is called angiogenesis. This may slow or stop mesothelioma's spread and increase the chance of survival for patients. Anti-angiogenic drugs are approved for the treatment of mesothelioma and other are currently in clinical trials.
Despite the advancements that have been made, there is still a lot to be done in finding better mesothelioma therapies. To find out about the latest treatment options, asbestos patients should seek out a mesothelioma specialist. A lot of treatments are only available through clinical trials, which is why it is recommended to take a look at an experiment to receive the best treatment possible. For help connecting with a mesothelioma specialist, use our free Doctor Match service.