Mesothelioma is a rare and aggressive cancer that develops in the lining of the organs in the mid section of the body. It is caused due to the presence of asbestos fibers. It is most commonly formed in the lung lining called the pleura. It may also appear in the abdomen lining called peritoneum and heart lining called pericardium. These linings are the protective membranes of the organs. Treatment and diagnosis of this disease is not easy as it appears after decades of being exposed to asbestos. There is no permanent cure for this cancer. However, there are a number of treatments available to manage the disease and avoid the pain and discomfort of the patient.
Chemotherapy has been used for the treatment of mesothelioma cancer since 1940s. Mesothelioma chemotherapy is divided in to two categories; traditional mesothelioma treatment and new mesothelioma treatment.
Chemotherapy is effective in the treatment of tumors that are in their early stages, it is not very useful in treating solid masses of tumor.
Many drugs are being used for the treatment of malignant mesothelioma but none have been able to provide a successful treatment. Chemotherapy drugs hinder the formation of new blood vessels, preventing the growth and spread of the tumor.
Choice of chemotherapy depends on many factors like; type of the mesothelioma, stage of the tumor and medical condition of the patient and other on going treatments. Other factors include: age of the patient and physical condition of the patient. Doctors generally suggest a combination of two chemotherapy drugs to the patient. The use of combination of drugs has proven to show better results for mesothelioma patients.
Cisplatin is one of the more traditional drugs. It is a platinum based drug which prevents the rapidly dividing cell from multiplying and duplicating their DNA for further cell division. Some new type of chemotherapy drugs are: Alimta (pemetrexed), Onconase (ranpirnase) and Veglin. Other common drugs of chemotherapy are:
Alimta
Anti-Angiogenesis
Cisplatin
Ondonase
Veglin
Carboplatin
Methotrexate
Cytoxan
Iflex
Before suggesting a drug the doctors will discuss all options with the patients. The doctor will require a complete medical history and the list of on going medicines.
The most common side effects of chemotherapy are nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite and hair loss. These drugs tend to physically exhaust the patient. Other side effects include: lack of red blood cells, diarrhea, constipation, weak immune system, hepatoxicity, neprotoxicity, ototoxicity and cardiotoxicity.
Despite of all the side effects, the patients still choose chemotherapy treatment.
Other uses of Chemotherapy:
Mesothelioma chemotherapy treatments are used for different purposes;
Neoadjuvant chemotherapy:
It is a pre surgical treatment used to reduce the size of the tumor masses.
Palliative chemotherapy:
It is used for treatment of the symptoms of the disease.
Adjuvant chemotherapy:
It is a post surgical treatment which helps to avoid the reappearance of the disease. It is also known as post operational chemotherapy.
Combined modality chemotherapy:
It is combined with other treatments such as radiotherapy and surgery for the treatment of the tumor.