New approaches to treat mesothelioma cancer are currently being tested. They usually combine traditional treatments or include something entirely new. They include:
1- Angiogenesis and Anti-angiogenesis Drugs
Although progress has been made in the early detection of cancer, and in improved treatment options once cancer is diagnosed, there are still many cancers, including mesothelioma, which can not be cured and remain difficult to treat effectively. In recent years, researchers have learned a great deal about how cancer cells differ from normal cells and, in an effort to find drugs without the potentially severe side effects of chemotherapy, have now discovered drugs which target the tumor itself while sparing the body’s normal cells. One such group are the anti-angiogenesis drugs.
2- Immunotherapy
This is sometimes called biological therapy, it involves the use of the body's own immune system to fight disease. Medical research has found out that the immune system may be primed to be able to recognize the difference between healthy cells and cancer cells, and eliminate those that become cancerous. Immunotherapy is designed to repair, stimulate, or enhance the immune system's natural anticancer function.
Substances used in immunotherapy, called biological response modifiers (BRMs) alter the interaction between the body's immune defenses and cancer, thereby improving the body's ability to fight disease. Some BRMs, such as cytokines and antibodies, occur naturally in the body, however, it is now possible to make BRMs in the laboratory that can imitate or influence natural immune response agents.
Many BRMs are currently being used in cancer treatment, including interferons, interleukins, tumor necrosis factor, colony-stimulating factors, monoclonal antibodies, and cancer vaccines.
3- Photodynamic therapy (PDT)
This is a type of cancer treatment that is based on the principle that single-celled organisms, if first treated with certain photosensitive drugs, will be destroyed and die when exposed to light at a particular frequency. PDT destroys cancerous cells by using this fixed frequency light to activate photosensitizing drugs which have accumulated in body tissues.
In PDT, a photosensitizing drug is administered intravenously. After some time, (usually a matter of days), the drug selectively concentrates in diseased cells, while rapidly being excreted from normal cells. The treated cancer cells are then exposed to a laser light chosen for its ability to activate the photosensitizing agent. This laser light is delivered to the cancer site, (in the case of mesothelioma, the pleura), through a fiberoptic device that allows the laser light to be manipulated by the physician. As the agent in the treated cells absorbs the light, an active form of oxygen destroys the surrounding cancer cells. The light exposure must be carefully timed, so that it occurs when most of the photosensitizing drug has been eliminated from the healthy cells, but is still present in the cancerous ones.
The major side effect of PDT is skin sensitivity. Patients undergoing this type of therapy are usually advised to avoid direct and even indirect sunlight for at least six weeks. Other side effects can include nausea, vomiting, a metallic taste in the mouth, and sensitivity of the eye to light. These symptoms may sometimes come as a result of the injection of the photosensitizing agent.
4 - Gene therapy
This is an approach to treating potentially fatal or disabling diseases by modifying the expression of an individual's genes toward a therapeutic goal. The premise of gene therapy is based on correcting disease at the DNA level and compensating for the abnormal genes.
Replacement gene therapy replaces a mutated or missing gene, most often a tumor suppressor gene, with a normal copy of that gene which serves to keep cell growth and division under control. The p53 gene, the most common gene mutated in cancer has become a prime target for gene replacement, and has met with some success in inhibiting cell growth, inhibiting angiogenesis (the development of a tumor's blood supply), and inducing apoptosis (cell death).
Knockout gene therapy targets the products of oncogenes (a gene that can induce tumor formation) in an effort to render them inactive and reduce cell growth.
With constantly expanding knowledge of the genes associated with cancer, their functions, and the delivery systems used in administering these genes, gene therapy has a very bright future.
5- Complementary and alternative medicine
This covers a wide range of healing methods not usually accepted nor recognized by conventional medicine. Some of these practices include the use of acupuncture, herbs, homeopathy, therapeutic massage, and Far Eastern medicine to treat health conditions.
These therapies may be used alone as an alternative to conventional medicine, or in combination with conventional medicine, in which case they are referred to as complementary. They are considered by many to be holistic in approach, meaning their focus is to treat the whole patient - physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. These treatments are not covered under most insurance policies.
Many cancer patients try various complementary and/or alternative medicine techniques during the course of their treatment, and although they may not work for everyone, some patients benefit by managing their symptoms or side effects. One important point to note is that you must discuss any complementary or alternative treatments you may be considering with your doctor to be sure that it does not interfere with your conventional care. For instance, dietary supplements such as herbs or vitamins may be "natural", but not necessarily "safe". They may lessen the effectiveness of certain anticancer drugs, or when taken with other drugs or in large doses, may actually cause harm and aid cancer growth.
Your personal physician may be able to advise you about the use of complementary and alternative treatments and therapies, and how they relate to mesothelioma.
The combination of complementary and conventional therapies is sometimes referred to as integrative medicine.
Patients should learn as much as they can about mesothelioma and treatment options and reach out to available resources to make coping with a mesothelioma diagnosis easier.
Mesothelioma Treatment-What are the Emerging New Approaches?
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