Conventional Mesothelioma Treatments
There are three types of mesothelioma: pleural, pericardial and peritoneal. Conventional mesothelioma treatment for these types includes surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy. These treatments are typically used in conjunction with one another so patients get the right kind of care. For example, when you opt for trimodality therapy, you are going to find elements of surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Each segment has a specific function:
- Surgery - used to get rid of a mesothelioma tumor mass
- Chemotherapy - used to reduce the malignant mesothelioma growth by injecting medicine into the affected portion
- Radiation therapy - used to pinpoint any lingering mesothelioma cells and uses high-energy rays to stop the growth of tumors
Combining all three treatments will not eradicate malignant mesothelioma, but it is quite effective in increasing the survival rate of the patient and allows time for more effective treatments.
Conventional Mesothelioma Treatments
Chemotherapy is the only treatment to improve the survival rate expectancy for mesothelioma patients at this time. This therapy has shown significant improvement from a life expectancy of ten months to a little over 13 months. Chemotherapy along with other aggressive treatments and surgeries is showing very promising results.
Surgery to treat mesothelioma falls into two areas: palliative and curative. Palliative surgeries are those that help the patient to be more comfortable but don't reduce the amount of cancer in the body. Since there is no cure for mesothelioma, curative surgeries are meant to help reduce the amount of cancer in the body by removing larger tumors and cancerous tissues. Surgeries for mesothelioma include:
- Pneumonectomy
- Thoracoscopy
- Thoracentesis
- Pleurodesis
- Thoracotomy
- Paracentesis
Radiation therapy targets high energy x-rays at malignant cells or tumors. When the treatment is successful, the cancer cells that were targeted are killed. Since mesothelioma victims often have cancer in multiple areas of their body, mesothelioma can be difficult to treat with radiation.
A newer type of radiation therapy specifically for mesothelioma patients is brachytherapy. With brachytherapy, radioactive rods are implanted directly at the tumor site in the abdomen or chest. Because the treatment is localized, damage to healthy tissues is minimized.
Please visit the website of Baltimore mesothelioma attorneys Parker, Dumler & Kiely LLP to learn more about mesothelioma injury claims.
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Please visit the website of Baltimore mesothelioma attorneys Parker, Dumler & Kiely LLP to learn more about mesothelioma injury claims.