Chemotherapy, or treatment with chemicals, is another type of treatment you and your doctor may choose in order to shrink or slow the growth of your tumor cells. Chemotherapy done before surgery is called neoadjuvant chemotherapy and chemotherapy done after surgery is called adjuvant chemotherapy.
There are many different types of chemotherapy, but three of the top choices used specifically to treat mesothelioma are pemetrexed IV sold under the brand name Altima, cisplatin and carboplatin.
Altima (pemetrexed IV) is a chemotherapy drug used to inhibit the growth and spread of cancer cells throughout your body. It is administered by health professionals through an intravenous injection every three weeks, and takes approximately ten minutes. The dosage your doctor chooses depends on your medical condition, body size and your response to the therapy.
Like many chemotherapy treatments, Altima (pemetrexed IV) has many side effects including, but not limited to; nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, constipation, diarrhea, headache, dizziness and tiredness, and temporary hair loss. As your treatment decreases, your side effects will subside, and your hair will begin to grow back.
Some of these side effects can be reduced by taking vitamins such as folic acid and a vitamin B12 injection. Although your doctor is aware of these side effects it always a good idea to discuss these and any other symptoms/side effects that you may experience.
While on the treatment of Altima (pemetrexed IV), if you experience rash, hives, itching, difficulty breathing, tightness in your chest, swelling of your mouth, face, lips or tongue, this could mean that you are having a severe allergic reaction. It is very important that you contact your physician right away with this information.
It is also very important to discuss any other medications you are currently taking with your doctor. Altima (pemetrexed IV) has many drug-drug interactions. In fact, it has 27 major drug interactions and 298 moderate drug interactions. Your doctor needs to be aware if any of the medications you are taking will affect the treatment choice made for you, or if any reactions will occur.
Cisplatin, the next drug of choice for treatment of mesothelioma is an antineoplastic medication. It interferes with the growth of cancer cells and slows the spread of them in your body. Cisplatin also has a list of side effects for you to be aware of. They can include, but again are not limited to; diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite and weakness.
If you are concerned about a severe allergic reaction, you would want to watch for rash, hives, itching, difficulty breathing, tightness in your chest, swelling of your mouth, face, lips or tongue and wheezing. This is not a complete list of side effects, and you would want to consult your physician with any concerns you have with taking cisplatin.
Like Altima (pemetrexed IV) cisplatin also has many drug-drug interactions, and it is just as important for your doctor to be made aware of any medications you are currently taking. Cisplatin has 52 major drug interactions, 235 moderate drug interactions and 7 minor drug interactions. If you are currently taking several medications and are unsure if you can remember them all, it is a good idea to write them down and give the list to your physician to ensure your safety when starting a new regimen like cisplatin chemotherapy.
Carboplatin, like the others, is a chemotherapy drug used to inhibit the growth and spread of mesothelioma cancer cells throughout your body. Unlike Altima (pemetrexed IV) and cisplatin, most people experience very minor, if any at all, side effects with carboplatin. These can include constipation, diarrhea, hair loss, loss of appetite, nausea, upset stomach or stomach pain, vomiting and weakness.
The severe allergic reaction side effects to keep an eye open for, if they do occur you need to notify your doctor immediately, can include rash, hives, itching, difficulty breathing, tightness in your chest, swelling of your mouth, face, lips or tongue, which are similar to the other two agents.
Often, doctors will suggest a combination of surgery, chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy to treat mesothelioma. This type of therapy is called combination therapy, or multimodality treatment, and can come at any stage during your disease either to work on reducing the size of tumors or to make you feel more comfortable as the disease progresses. You and your doctor can discuss the right combination of treatment options for you. This is called individualized treatment.
In a study that was published in 2008 both of these combinations proved a one-year survival rate over each agent individually. This means that when used in combination with pemetrexed IV, both cisplatin and carboplatin worked better and the patients had approximately one year longer to survive than the patients who only used cisplatin or the patients who only used carboplatin.
Studies like this are called clinical trials. Your physician may also suggest, or you can ask about clinical trials for treatments for mesothelioma. A clinical trial is a study of new drugs or methods for a particular disease – targeted drug therapy for specific abnormalities in cancer cells. It is a good idea to discuss with your doctor what clinical trials you may be eligible to enroll in for mesothelioma. Although clinical trials may lead doctors to new discoveries about ways to treat mesothelioma, it does not necessarily guarantee a cure.
Aside from single agent chemotherapy, and combing chemotherapy agents, your doctor may discuss combing radiation and surgery as a treatment option. It is a good idea to be open to suggestions from your doctor and learn what you can. Radiation therapy is often times more focused on the bad cells, and does not harm any of your healthy cells, whereas chemotherapy attacks all the cells.
However, radiation has been blamed for causing cancer in the past. So, when considering your treatment options, be open to what your doctor has to say, and collect as much information as you can – become educated. Chemotherapy may seem a bit difficult, but after careful consideration, could be the treatment choice for you.
