Chemotherapy for Mesothelioma Pain

Chemotherapy involves the use of anticancer drugs that act by preventing cancer cells from multiplying. In most cases, combinations of drugs are used to increase efficiency. Chemotherapy can be used aggressively to reduce the tumor, or palliative to relieve symptoms like shortness of breath or pain. Chemotherapy can be administered by injection into a vein or muscle, or by ingestion may be administered directly into the pleural or peritoneal cavity. The drugs most commonly used are:

* Pemetrexed (Alimta)
* Cisplatin (Platinol)
* Carboplatin (Paraplatin)
* Gemcitabine (Gemzar)
* Doxorubicin (Adriamycin)
Mitomycin *
* Raltitrexed (Tomudex)
* Vinorelbine (Navelbine)

New drugs are constantly being studied by pharmaceutical companies, so do not hesitate to check with your doctor about drugs most recent and most promising. Such a drug, Alimta (pemetrexed) was approved for Europe in September 2005.
Radiotherapy

Radiotherapy involves the use of X-ray high energy to kill cancer cells and reduce tumors. It can be used in conjunction with surgery to help remove aggressively seeding microscopic which may cause the recurrence of disease, or palliative treat pain caused by tumors that compress the nerve endings or another organ. Radiation therapy was also effective in preventing tumor seeding from biopsy sites or tube drainage of the chest.
Clinical trials

The goal of clinical trials is to involve patients in the discovery of new and better treatments for their illnesses. Several clinical trials have different objectives which may include testing of new drugs, by comparing several ways to treat a disease or test several techniques to prevent cancer. Clinical trials are divided into three phases. Short summaries of what each phase of the test seeks to achieve are described below.

The Phase I trials are the earliest phase in the system of clinical trials. At this point, the drugs were only tested in the laboratory, but had a destructive effect on cancer cells. These tests n'enrôlent a limited number of participants, and are only available in few institutions of cancer. The objective of Phase I trials are to determine the maximum tolerated dose of the drug without causing side effects serious side effects which are most common, and if the drug continues to have anticancer activity when administered to human beings . If the drug showed an effect on cancer at a safe dosage, the drug will be tested in Phase II trials.

The essays Phase II continue to test the safety of medications or procedures, but also begin to more carefully analyze their effectiveness for certain types of cancer. These tests include larger numbers of participants, and can be dispersed over several institutions. These tests may be "randomized", which means that different groups of participants are chosen by computer, rather than by a doctor.

The Phase III trials compare new drugs or procedures promising current standard treatment. Large numbers of participants from widely scattered regions involved in these tests, and receive either the new treatment is the standard treatment. One of the primary objectives of Phase III trials is to determine if the cancer is reduced or slowed by drugs, how long patients remain stable without progression of the disease and how treatment with the drug affects the quality of life of the patient.

If you are interested to participate in a clinical trial for mesothelioma pain, your doctor should be able to provide information on eligibility and availability in your area.