New Mesothelioma Treatments Revealed

by Aaron Almus

If you have or are concerned about finding out you have mesothelioma, there are three new mesothelioma treatments that have had success in slowing down the cancer. They are immunotherapy, intensity modulated radiation therapy and gene therapy. Each of these will be explained in this article and hopefully provide you with information that will provide a better idea of your treatment options.

A mesothelioma treatment that is being used worldwide is called immunotherapy. Depending on where you live in the world you might have heard it referred to as biological therapy. In this treatment a patients immune system is stimulate to fight the disease. Biological Response Modifiers, a natural component of the body's immune system, is placed into the patient's immune system. This provides a boost to the immune system that helps fight the cancer.

Everyone is familiar with chemotherapy and the horrible side effects that it can produce. This is because the entire body is exposed to radiation. An alternative therapy that has been used is intensity modulated radiation therapy. This therapy is better on the patient because the radiation is administered in the specific region of the cancer.

The third mesothelioma treatment is known as gene therapy. This is one of the more revolutionary therapies available and has become a very effective treatment not just for mesothelioma but for other fatal diseases. In gene therapy, genes are inserted directly into a patient's cells and tissues to treat the cancer. Gene therapy represents a revolution in mesothelioma treatment by replacing cancer-causing genes with genes medically engineered to die when exposed to cancerous growths.

These engineered genes are a possible way to stop the rapid spread of cancer cells. There are two main types of these genes: knockout gene therapy and replacement gene therapy. Knockout therapy helps fight mesothelioma by assaulting the genes that cause tumors to form and prevent them from forming. Replacement gene therapy replaces a damaged or missing gene with a normal gene that regulates cell growth and division. The genes replaced are usually one that suppresses tumor growth in other circumstances.

This type of therapy is still in its beginning stages and by no means is completely safe. However, because of the results thus far and the fatalness of mesothelioma many patients are willing to participate in various treatments, for any hope of survival outweighs many of the dangers involved. Remember, any treatment options should be discussed with your doctor.

About the Author
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