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Your treatment choices depend on your age, the stage of the cancer, and how much the cancer has affected your health. The goal of treatment is to control the cancer for as long as possible and to keep you comfortable.
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Each type of treatment has a different goal. Here is a list of the main treatments and their goals for this type of cancer. You may have more than one of these treatments.
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You might have supportive treatments for malignant mesothelioma. These treatments don't cure the mesothelioma, but they can help treat your symptoms.
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If malignant mesothelioma is in its early stage and hasn't spread, it may be possible to take the cancer out of your body with surgery. If the cancer is in your chest and is found very early, the doctor may only need to remove the lining where the cancer started along with nearby lymph nodes. If cancer has spread to your lungs, it may also be removed. Sometimes the surgeon must remove part of the muscle that separates your chest from your stomach (called the diaphragm), as well as the lining around your heart (called the pericardium).
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After surgery, you may experience pain in the area operated on. Some discomfort is normal after surgery. It will not last for long and doctors can help you manage it with medication. Depending on what type of surgery you need, you may need therapy to help you get back to your normal routine.
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Chemotherapy is the use of drugs to kill cancer cells. For this treatment, you will see a medical oncologist. This is a doctor who specializes in using drugs to treat cancer. For malignant mesothelioma, your doctor may give you more than one drug. This is called combination chemotherapy.
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You may get chemotherapy drugs alone or in combination. Your doctor may give you one of the following drugs alone.
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Chemotherapy affects both normal cells and cancer cells. Side effects depend on the type and amount of drugs you take. Here are some common side effects that people with malignant mesothelioma have when they take chemotherapy. Ask your doctor which ones are the most likely to happen to you.
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Radiation therapy is one way to treat malignant mesothelioma. This treatment is also called radiotherapy. It uses X-rays to control the growth of cancer cells. Radiation is a local treatment. That means it affects the cancer cells only in the area treated.
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Radiation affects both normal cells and cancer cells. This means it can cause side effects. These are the side effects that are common to all people who get radiation, no matter what area of the body is being treated.
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