Jumat, 12 Februari 2010

Drugs for Varying Stage of Mesothelioma Pain


Nearly all people with mesothelioma feel discomfort and pain, that progresses as the disease develop further. Many sufferers take certain pain drugs to cut down on pain and sustain their life quality. These are the drugs used for mesothelioma pain

Moderate to mild pain
NSAIDs and acetaminophen, like ibuprofen and aspirin. You may get them without a prescription, over the counter. A few more potent nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs do need a prescription from a doctor.

Burning and tingling pain
There a re a couple of drugs for this pain level, antiseizure and antidepressants drugs, have proved to be highly effective in dealing with burning and tingling feelings. Using the antidepressant drugs doesn't mean that you have a severe mental disease, and using anantiseizure drugs doesn't mean that you will have seizures. If the doctor prescribes you one of these, the doctor only wants to use one of the beneficial properties of the drugs.
Medications such imipramine, amitriptyline, trazodone and doxepin have shown to be useful in relieving pain if the patient have nerve damages. They're also useful for relieving mesothelioma symptoms. Carbamezeping, gabapentin, and lamotrine are good antiseizure drugs and must be prescribed

Severe pain
hydrocodone, morphine, codeine, oxycodone, hydromorphone, methadone, and fentanyl. All of those drugs need a prescription.

Critical Pain
ACTIQ is a highly potent drug approved by the FDA specifically to deal with breakthrough pains. It takes form as a lollipop and basically a very strong opiate and measured at about a hundred times stronger than morphine. It dissolves easily in water and immediately absorbed by membranes in human mouth, the effect is quickly felt about five minutes after the consumption.

Some people also try acupuncture and yoga to deal with moderate pains as it safer than using drugs. However, for more severe pain, there is no other choice than using drugs.

The Dangers of Undetected Phase of Mesothelioma

As we all often heard, mesothelioma is caused by the prolonged accumulation of asbestos fibers inside human lungs. The disease basically strikes the mesothelium which is a protective membrane of all our vital organs. In many cases, it has been shown that people with mesothelioma, previously worked in a high risk environment with many asbestos dusts floating around. Especially in industrial complex where asbestos is one of the main components in manufacturing process.
In some cases mesothelioma cancer sufferers are observed to have been affected merely because of washing the clothes of their family members who worked in a manufacturing plant. However it is not yet established if there is a link between heavy smoking habits and mesothelioma. It is quite worrying as we know the fact that a few months of asbestos exposure may cause a critical illness in 30 or 40 years or sometimes even 60 years later. People exposed in 1960 can be diagnosed with mesothelioma disease now.

On having Mesothelioma, people can have shortness of breath, slight discomfort in their chest area and coughing, However peritoneal mesothelioma results in abdominal pain and sudden weight loss. Peritoneal mesothelioma contributes to blockage in digestive system, irregular blood coagulation, anaemia, and periodical fevers. And if the cancer disperses to other locations of our body, it may result in swelling, difficulty in swallowing or pain in face and neck. Mesothelioma may only be discovered by pathologic analysis if additional test is justified, more examinations can be performed. Mesothelioma has a few types of therapies. One involves surgical procedure, ie, to remove the tumors. Second, the intense radiotherapy to obliterate cancer cells. The last is chemotherapy, potent medications are injected in body to kill cancer chemically.
Mesothelioma is hard to detect a few years after exposure as there are no discernible effects. So it's important to review your past experiences whether you have worked or lived in places where it's likely to have many floating asbestos fibers.