Table of Contents
Suppose you have mesothelioma and have researched the members of your team, who are mesothelioma specialists. This means that these specialists have extensive experience helping people with mesothelioma and have published in peer-reviewed journals about the illness. You likely still have questions about who exactly treats mesothelioma. A team of professionals will most likely work together to combat your mesothelioma. These professionals often have training in certain types of cancer, cancer treatment, specific body parts, health problems associated with cancer, and managing patient care. Some of the professionals you will likely encounter if you’ve been diagnosed with mesothelioma include:
- Anesthesiologists are physicians who focus on providing drugs and other agents that result in a loss of feeling that places a patient into sleep or relieves pain
- Case managers are participants in a care team who coordinate the care of a patient from diagnosis to recovery. Case managers often work in conjunction with insurance carriers and connect the patient with available resources.
- Chaplain. A clergy member who helps manage the spiritual needs of patients and families can help to address various spiritual beliefs.
- Clinical nurse specialists. Advanced practice registered nurses with either master’s or doctorate degrees and certification work in conjunction with the team and have unique training and experience in a specific area of nursing. Oncology clinical nurses have various roles including directing patients and families.
- Dermatological oncologists. Skin doctors who have unique training in the diagnosis and treatment of cancers that appear on the skin.
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- A dietician is a professional in the field of food, diet, and nutrition. Many registered dieticians focus on specific areas like weight management or cancer treatment.
- Discharge planner. Most times, a nurse or social worker wants to aid patients being discharged from the hospital to make sure that they have what they need to thrive at home. Sometimes, planners also help people find other places to go after being discharged from the hospital including rehabilitation centers or nursing homes.
- Osteopathic medicine doctors. Physicians with backgrounds similar to medical doctors, but are uniquely trained to utilize a “whole person” approach to medicine instead of simply treating just one symptom.
- Dosimetrist. An individual with distinct training and certification who determines the appropriate dosage of radiation for therapy as well as for cancer treatment.
- Endocrinologist. A physician who focuses on diseases associated with the endocrine system including the thyroid, pancreas, and pineal glands.
- Enterostomal therapist. A nurse is trained and certified to instruct people how to handle ostomies, which are surgically crafted openings.
- Gastroenterologist. A physician who focuses on diseases of the digestive system.
- Genetic counselor. A health professional who helps individuals appreciates the risk of genetic disorders and if genetic testing can be valued based on a person’s history. Counselors also meet with individuals who have received genetic testing to offer information about screening choices.
- Gynecological oncologist. A physician who focuses on cancers that impact female sex organs.
- Gynecologist. A physician who focuses on female health issues including both reproductive and sexual functions as well as the disease of reproductive organs.
- Hematologist. A physician who focuses on blood disorders, which include blood cancers as well as issues with blood formation.
- Hepatologist. A physician who focuses on diseases of both the bile ducts and liver.
- Home health nurse. A nurse who offers care in patients’ homes. The nurse’s services often include teaching and providing medications and treatments as well as examining to see if patients need additional medical care.
- Hospice specialists. Physicians, nurses, and other health care experts work together in a family-focused approach. Hospice specialists focus on the emotional, spiritual, and physical needs of patients who are approaching the end of life and who are no longer receiving active treatment for serious illnesses.
- Hospitalists. These doctors work only at hospitals.
- Licensed practical nurses. Nurses who have completed at least a year of technical health training and passed appropriate licensure testing. These nurses can give some medications as well as help patients with matters of hygiene.
- Medical oncologist. A physician who focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of chemotherapy and other medications. A medical oncologist varies from a surgical oncologist who relies on surgery to treat cancer. Oncologists play a valuable role in administering chemotherapy, which is a cancer drug that can be utilized to stop the growth of cancer cells. Chemotherapy often plays a part in treating mesothelioma and can sometimes even help to extend a patient’s life and improve the quality of life. In most cases, chemotherapy is administered intravenously or through a surgical port. The selection of chemotherapy drugs is administered based on your needs. Many chemotherapies for mesothelioma are given in addition to a regimen of vitamins that both minimizes the toxic quality of chemotherapy and maximizes the effectiveness of the drug. During an initial meeting, an oncologist will address the painful symptoms that you are experiencing, which might include difficulty breathing. Oncologists can also coordinate a patient’s meeting with nutrition and social services. An oncologist can provide efficient processes to navigate treatment as soon as possible through diagnostic testing and evaluation. Our oncologists have experience with the most cutting-edge chemotherapy therapies and have the skills necessary to create unique therapies for each patient to maximize that patient’s chances of beating the illness. An oncologist will review these options with you and decide what option works best for you.
- Naturopathic doctor. A physician who is not a medical doctor but who receives training focused on supporting a person’s self-healing skills.
- Neonatologist. A physician who focuses on the field of newborn babies.
- Nephrologist. A physician who focuses on kidney disease.
- Neurosurgeon. A physician who focuses on operations that involve the nervous systems, which include organs like the brain and spinal cord.
- Nurse anesthetist. A nurse with a degree in providing drugs and other agents that cause loss of feeling or the release of pain.
- Nurse practitioner. A registered nurse with an advanced degree who works closely with a physician to diagnose and address care and has advanced training in the areas of medical skills and nursing.
- Nutritionist. Sometimes used in conjunction with a dietician, this individual is focused on the food that a person takes into his or her body.
- Occupational therapist. A therapist who works in conjunction with people who are faced with functional limitations to help them address and improve the skills necessary for daily living. Therapists also help to avoid disability and to keep up health.
- Oncologist. A medical professional who focuses on the diagnosis and treating cancers.
- Ophthalmologist. A physician who focuses on eye diseases.
- Oral and maxillofacial surgeon. These medical professionals focus on surgery of the mouth and jaw as well as the face.
- Orthopedic surgeons. Surgeons focused on the diseases and injuries of the muscles, bones, and joints.
- Otolaryngologist. A physician who focuses on diseases and injuries of the nose, throat, and ears. Sometimes, this doctor is also referred to as an ENT or ear, nose, and throat doctor.
- Pain specialists. Medical professionals who focus on how to best treat pain.
- Palliative care specialists. These medical professionals work together to address things like nausea, pain, and fatigue.
- Pathologist. A physician who focuses on the diagnosis and classification of lab tests by analyzing tissues and cells with a microscope.
- Pediatric oncologist. This physician focuses on cancers faced by children and young adults.
- Pediatrician. A physician who provides care to children and young adults.
- Physical therapist. A professional who helps to address and treat physical difficulties and relies on various strategies to maintain the body’s condition.
- Pulmonologist. A physician who focuses on both the diagnosis and treatment of lung conditions.
- Radiation oncologist. A physician who specializes in applying radiation to treat cancer.
- Radiation therapist. An individual with training to use the machinery that delivers radiation therapy. Radiation is a noninvasive type of cancer therapy that is utilized to treat various types of cancer through the application of radiation, which kills cancer cells. A radiation oncologist focuses on what strategies can be utilized to target cancer cells while keeping healthy tissue alive. In situations involving mesothelioma, radiation therapy has two roles: radiation can be used to reduce the severity of symptoms associated with mesothelioma, and radiation can be utilized to reduce any cancer cells that remain after chemotherapy or after surgery. Radiation oncologists utilize the most advanced techniques to apply radiation. Based on a person’s needs, a radiation therapist might decide to apply radiation through various techniques including image-guided radiation therapy on a daily basis to make sure the tumor is located within the radiation beams and intensity-modulated radiation therapy that involves sophisticated computer technology to increase the delivery of radiation to the tumor while sparing surrounding healthy tissue.
- Radiological technologist. These healthcare workers position patients for diagnostic imagery and then both develop and check these images for quality.
- Radiologist. A physician with skill in diagnosing diseases by reading diagnostic results like x-rays to make assessments about the inside of a body.
- Registered nurses. Nurses who treat patients and who can obtain specialties in any part of healthcare. ra
- Respiratory therapists. Professionals who work in conjunction with people who are faced with breathing problems to arrive at breathing treatments and management strategies.
- Social workers. Health care workers who focus on social, emotional, and environmental issues associated with illness or disability. Social workers can help individuals find available resources and provide counseling on critical issues including insurance coverage and emotional concerns.
- Surgeons. Doctors with unique training perform surgery on extra tumors or body parts impacted by the disease. Surgical oncologists focus on performing surgery to remove areas that contain cancers. Surgeons have created and refined advanced surgical treatments for mesothelioma.
Some of the most cutting-edge treatments for mesothelioma include intraoperative chemotherapeutic drugs. There are not many best surgeons and people with mesothelioma often must travel to find surgeons with the skills necessary to help treat the illness. The surgeons can help to conduct surgeries to remove all visible remnants of mesothelioma, which can ultimately extend a patient’s life. Some choices that exist for even the deadliest malignant mesothelioma include pleurectomy which involves the removal of the chest lining and extrapleural pneumonectomy which involves removing the damaged lung in addition to the chest lining as well as portions of the covering of the heart as well as the diaphragm. Some surgeons even have begun to administer chemotherapy to improve the effectiveness of chemotherapy routines. This technique involves surgery where all visible signs of the disease are removed and then infusing a bath of chemotherapy drug or drugs into the chest cavity. Heating increases the effectiveness of drug treatment utilized to remove tumor cells. Besides, other medications are sometimes administered to guard normal cells against the chemotherapy agents and reduce side effects.
The surgical removal of mesothelioma is utilized as a procedure in both the early and middle stages of mesothelioma if medical professionals think that the body can handle the complications as well as the repercussions of surgery. Unfortunately, mesothelioma routinely develops in older individuals, and the potential health ramifications can be an obstruction to surgery. If you are in an advanced stage of mesothelioma, you might be offered treatment that includes chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation referred to as trimodal. It remains uncertain to what extent the combination of therapies helps patients with mesothelioma. Medical professionals are also not yet certain about what technique is most effective. What therapies you receive will largely depend on what stage your surgeon and other medical team determine you now face. Some surgeons conduct lung-sparing cytoreductive surgery on mid to late-stage mesothelioma patients. This surgery involves extracting layers of the membrane that surround the thorax and lungs referred to as the pleura or all of the pleural tissue while not touching the lung. This surgery can achieve good outcomes and increase the survival of patients. Meanwhile, extrapleural pneumonectomy involves removing large amounts of both the lung and pleura with the focus of removing all mesothelioma tumors that may exist. This surgery is not suggested as a treatment for individuals with mesothelioma. For people with early mesothelioma, however, this surgery can be an option. Following surgery, radiation will likely be utilized to avoid seeding which happens when the tumor cells are moved around a patient’s body by surgery tools. Remember, the type of surgery that is recommended will largely be influenced by the phase of mesothelioma that you face.
- Urologists. Physicians who focus on treating issues with the urinary tract as well as the male reproductive system.
The Valuable Role of Clinical Trials
Clinical trials are studies utilized to examine new drugs as well as previously approved drugs and other types of treatment. Many clinical trials examine new methods to detect as well as measure the extent of a disease. Some clinical trials even consider ways to avoid diseases from happening. People who run clinical trials play a substantial role in helping being diagnosed with mesothelioma.
Some clinical studies even consider ways to prevent illnesses from occurring. Medical researchers still rely on human volunteers to test these methods and similar rules still apply.
Physicians utilize clinical trials to discover whether a new medication, treatment, or combination of treatments works and can be safely used for individuals. Clinical trials are vital in creating a new treatment for serious illnesses like mesothelioma.
All treatments must pass through clinical trials before becoming approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Cancer clinical trials can take weeks or sometimes even years to finish. It can take a long time to determine if cancer treatment works in the way that it is intended. The same is as true for mesothelioma treatment
Clinical trials reveal what works in medicine and health care. These procedures are the best way to discover what works in combating diseases like cancer. Clinical trials exist to address some important questions, which include:
- Whether the medication works in people. If the medication does work in people, it’s important to question whether physicians also look at how well the procedure works and whether the treatment is better than what is currently being used. If the treatment is not better than what is currently used, professionals should consider whether it is as good and causes fewer side effects. Another question is whether it works in some individuals who are not currently helped by existing treatments.
- Whether the new treatment is safe. Remember, no treatment is entirely without risk. The question instead is whether the benefits of the new treatment outweigh the risks.
- Whether the treatment is better than the standard treatment applied for the disease. Clinical trials can help to show if a new medication or treatment works better than what is currently used.
People who run clinical treatments must answer these and many other questions while giving individuals as few as possible in unknown treatments. This means that clinical trials are often run in various phases. The people who create the design of the trial each phase address certain questions while making sure that the people who participate in the trial are kept as safe as possible. Results from these phases reveal if the new drug or treatment is safe and effective.