Radiation Therapy
Radiation therapy is one of the most established treatment regimens for patients of all types of cancer. In fact, the American Cancer Society reports that nearly 60% of cancer patients undergo radiation therapy at some point during their treatment program. In terms of the therapy, it often considered less invasive in that it involves no surgical procedure and is not associated with some of the more difficult side effects of chemotherapy. Mesothelioma is no exception to the widespread use of radiation therapy and has been integrated into the treatment programs of most mesothelioma patients. In some cancers, radiation therapy can be used as a curative treatment. However, as mesothelioma has no true cure, it is generally used to decrease symptomatic pain or discomfort of the disease.
Understanding however, how radiation therapies work against cancer, is somewhat more complicated. To put it simply high doses of radiation kill cancer cells. On a somewhat more technical level, the action of radiation on cancer cells happens at the molecular level. Tiny particles of radiation penetrate the body and go directly into the cancer cells. Once within the cell, the radiation will often mutate the replication enzymes and molecules within the cells and eliminate or slow the growth of the tumor. The radiation will kill a great deal of the cancer cells in some cancers, but is unable to completely eliminate the tumor in cases of mesothelioma The true value of radiation for mesothelioma patients is its ability to slow down aggressive cancers, such as malignant mesothelioma.
Radiation therapy is also likely to be used in conjunction with chemotherapy or other treatment program, such as surgery. On a case by case basis a physician will decide which treatment program is best for each patient, which may indeed be the integration of two or more methodologies into a single patient's treatment roadmap. For instance, radiation therapy has been used in conjunction with surgery to shrink the tumor prior to surgical resection. Radiation therapy has also been used a great deal in conjunction with chemotherapy in order to increase the chemotherapeutic regimen's efficacy.
An individual's treatment program will be different from person to person and cancer specialists as well as the family and patient should be involved in determining that program. Whether its radiation therapy or another treatment, the family and loved ones through the guidance of the doctor can assuredly help the patient decide what is best for them.
