Treatment for Peritoneal Mesothelioma

Treatment for Peritoneal Mesothelioma

By Omoluwabi Oluwaseyi

Peritoneal Mesothelioma is the name given to the cancer that attacks the lining of the abdomen. This type of cancer is caused by ABESTOS exposure and it affects the linings that protect the contents of the abdomen and which also provides a lubrication to enable the organs to move and work effectively.

There are a number of symptoms for these diseases. However like all other types of MESOTHELIOMA, there is a very long latency period and symptom may not become evident for decades after exposure. This means that by the time the symptoms have begun, it is often already too late to offer any real constructive treatment.

The symptoms of this disease include pain and weakness, weight loss, nausea, loss of appetite abdominal swelling, bowel obstruction. There are several tests that doctors can run to determine if a patient has a peritoneal mesothelioma diagnosis. These tests vary in terms of intrusion into the body and accuracy. A time line for testing a person suspected of having peritoneal mesothelioma is as follows:

When a patient first presents at the doctors office complaining of difficulty breathing, abdominal pain, or pneumonia types symptoms, the primary care physician will take an X-ray or CT scan to determine the presence of asbestos in or around the lungs, heart or stomach.

If tumors or growths are detected, the primary care physician will typically refer the patient to a specialist for various tests to determine whether there is a mesothelioma diagnosis.

Peritoneal mesothelioma diagnosis is generally tested for in one of two ways. Depending on the condition of the patient, the doctor may want to do a minimally intrusive procedure called a needle biopsy. The procedure allows the doctor to abstract cells suspected of cancer infection from the lining affected area. The doctor can run tests on the mesothelial cells to determine the proper diagnosis for the patient. There are several ways in which the doctor can perform a tissue biopsy in order to run tests for mesothelioma. Your doctor may decide to do a needle biopsy, where a hollow needle is inserted through the skin and into the chest cavity.

The second more common way that doctor’s test for Peritoneal mesothelioma is to surgically enter the patients body, at which time they cut a small piece of infected tissue for biopsy purposes. If the doctor determines that the mesothelioma diagnosis is malignant, they will likely refer the patient to an oncologist (cancer doctor) for further tests and treatment.

The oncologist will test the patient to determine the progression of the mesothelioma and the prognosis for the future. Generally, the oncologist will start the patient on a series of chemotherapy treatments to slow the growth of the mesothelioma. If the doctor determines, after running tests, that the patient is not a candidate for chemotherapy, the oncologists may prescribe medication to help the patient with pain management.

Treatment however include:

(1) {SURGERY}:

This entails cutting the out part of the linings and tissues from the abdomen in order to remove the tumor. It may sometimes be necessary to remove a line or part of the diaphragm in order for surgery to succeed in the removal Peritoneal Mesothelioma tumor.

(2) {RADIATION THERAPY}:

This is where high energy x-rays are used to shrink tumors and kill cancerous cells in the affected area. There are two ways to administer radiation therapy. The first is through external means, where a machine is placed outside the body and emits radiation through the body. As well as administering the radiation therapy through the tubes; doctors are also able to administer any required drugs this way.

(3) {CHEMOTHERAPY}:

Here, a combination of drugs is used to try and kill off the cancer cells. Drugs can be administered by mouth in tablet form, or you have the administered intravenously via needle into a vein or a muscle.