by Tony Ulrich
New mesothelioma treatments are rigorously studied and enhanced in the hope that a more effective treatment, or even cure, will be found. Researchers in this field all agree that a new mesothelioma treatment will, at some point in time, prove to be successful, regardless of the fact that treatments have yet to have been shown to be better than traditional treatments. New malignant mesothelioma treatments are currently in the trial phase. These include:
- Anti-angiogenesis - a treatment with helps to prevent tumors from producing new blood vessels, hence, preventing tumor growth and development. These drugs do not directly target cancer cells. However, they target its blood supply which is essential for its survival and growth. Thus, they can prevent new tumors from developing and cause pre-existing tumors to shrink in size.
- Photodynamic therapy (PDT) - a highly specialized, specific treatment used to treat pleural mesothelioma. However, this treatment is inapt for those with metastasized cancer in comparison to those who have developed localized disease. This treatment involves destroying cancer cells with the use of light energy.
- Immunotherapy - also known as biological therapy, uses one's own immune system in order to shield itself against disease. It has been discovered that our immune system is able to distinguish between healthy and cancerous cells and hence is able to destroy those that are discovered to be cancerous. Such a treatment is designed to aid the immune system's restoration and improvement. Two main varieties of immunotherapy are in existence:
1. Active immunotherapy - this involves removing cancer cells and then using them to develop a vaccine which is injected into the patient. If this treatment proves successful, the individual's immune system recognizes that the vaccine contains a dangerous substance and thus, the immune system then recognizes that the cancer is detrimental too.
2. Passive immunotherapy - this treatment involves utilizes substances like cytokines and other types of agents to aid improving the immune system's reaction to the cancer that they are suffering from.
- Gene therapy - this therapy involves the use of a genetic substance to target cancerous cells and render them of greater susceptibility to chemotherapy. The main form of gene therapy in use in patients with mesothelioma is termed "suicide gene therapy". Such a therapy forces the cancer cells to produce substances that contribute to their death. While undergoing this form of gene therapy, patients are treated with a form of non-infectious disease which has been modified with specific genetic elements which produces a certain type of protein. The patient is later treated with chemotherapy which has been specifically formulated to only prove toxic to the cancerous cells. As a new treatment for mesothelioma, this form of therapy has lead to a many promising outcomes for patents. However, at present, this new mesothelioma treatment remains only to be offered to patients through clinical research trials.
About the Author
Tony Ulrich was diagnosed with kidney cancer in october of 2009. He researches cancer causes and publishes articles about cancers and their treatments.
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