Mesothelioma Radiation

Radiation Therapy for Mesothelioma

Radiation therapy is one of several mesothelioma treatment options that can extend a patient’s life expectancy and improve their quality of life by keeping tumors from being able to grow. It’s also effective in cases where a patient’s health makes surgery too risky.

How does Radiation Therapy Work?

Radiation therapy uses high-energy rays — typically gamma or X-rays — aimed directly at the site of the mesothelioma tumor. These rays damage the DNA of cancer cells, causing them to die off by losing the instructions that tell them to grow and divide.

Before starting radiation, doctors use imaging tests to pinpoint the cancer’s exact location, which helps doctors prevent damage to healthy surrounding tissues.

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Goals of Mesothelioma Radiation Therapy

Radiation therapy is considered one of the standard mesothelioma treatment options recommended to patients. It is typically used with surgery or chemotherapy to improve treatment success or during palliative care to reduce symptoms and improve quality of life.

According to the American Cancer Society, mesothelioma is difficult to treat with radiation alone because the tumors do not usually grow as one large mass that mesothelioma doctors can target. Instead, mesothelioma tends to spread, covering delicate tissues and organs.

Radiation kills all cells — not just cancerous ones — so it can be difficult for mesothelioma specialists to hit cancer cells with radiation beams without damaging vital organs.

Newer radiation techniques allow for better control of radiation beams, making radiation therapy more useful for mesothelioma patients.

Types of Radiation Therapy for Mesothelioma

Mesothelioma is usually treated with external beam radiation therapy (EBRT), but other types exist.

External Beam Radiation Therapy (EBRT)

External beam radiation therapy is the most common type of radiation therapy. As the name suggests, EBRT is administered through the skin from outside the body. Thanks to technological advancements, EBRT is increasingly more effective at targeting tumors.

Before beginning radiation therapy, doctors must determine precisely where to aim the radiation and how much to administer. To do this, they examine the patient closely by performing imaging tests.

Mesothelioma tumors are often irregularly shaped, and form in separate areas, so cancer targeting can be complicated.

The IMRT method varies the strength, pattern, and shape of radiation beams to apply radiation more directly and protect the surrounding tissue. This technique allows doctors to conform the radiation beam to the precise shape of the tumor and fine-tune the radiation doses.

Intraoperative Radiation Therapy

Intraoperative radiation therapy (IORT) is an EBRT radiation therapy approach used to work alongside surgery. IORT is administered inside the body while the tumor site(s) is directly exposed during surgery.

By applying radiation therapy directly to the open mesothelioma site, doctors can increase surgical success by preventing mesothelioma cells from spreading.

The IORT approach also prevents damage to healthy tissues since radiation does not pass through the skin from the outside.

Only used on early-stage mesothelioma patients, IORT can further increase life expectancy from surgery-based treatment plans. Depending on a patient’s diagnosis, doctors may recommend the IORT approach with pleural or peritoneal mesothelioma surgeries.

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Brachytherapy

Brachytherapy or internal radiation is a type of radiation therapy that works by inserting a radioactive device inside a patient’s tumor.

Brachytherapy lets doctors use higher doses of radiation in more specific places than traditional radiation therapy would allow.

Brachytherapy is rarely used to treat mesothelioma, but its effectiveness in treating lung cancer gives some doctors hope that it may help in future mesothelioma treatment.

Radiation Therapy Process

While radiation therapy may vary from patient to patient, it follows the same basic steps.

1. Initial Consultation: The mesothelioma patient meets with a radiation oncologist — a cancer doctor who specializes in treating patients with radiation. The patient will bring documentation such as previous imaging and diagnostic test results.
   Once there, the radiation oncologist will thoroughly examine the patient and answer any questions.
   After the exam, the doctor will determine and explain a radiation therapy treatment plan to the patient, who must sign a consent form before treatment can proceed.
2. Imaging Scans: Mesothelioma specialists must create accurate imaging to let them know the target location for radiation therapy. They do this using a computed tomography (CT) machine, which simulates the patient’s body for roughly an hour.
3. Treatment Preparation: Doctors may sometimes make a faint marking on a patient to ensure they achieve the most accurate radiation treatment possible and avoid as much healthy tissue as possible. They may also create molds to protect a patient’s face or other areas of the body during radiation.
4. Treatment: According to the National Cancer Institute (NCI), radiation treatment is typically performed five days a week and continues for 5-6 weeks. The average duration of daily radiation treatment is 15-30 minutes.
5. Follow-Up Appointment: Follow-up appointments usually involve examining any signs of side effects the radiation therapy may cause. A mesothelioma patient’s doctor will also order imaging scans to see if the tumor is shrinking in response to the radiation.

Side Effects of Mesothelioma Radiation Therapy

Although radiation oncologists do everything they can to protect surrounding tissues during radiation therapy, damage to healthy cells may result in side effects. Some patients experience many side effects, while others have very few.

Radiation therapy side effects depend on:

• Location of the area under treatment
• Size of the area being treated
• Radiation dosage level
• Treatment frequency

Side effects can happen during therapy or immediately after, but most side effects take weeks to develop following treatment.

Fortunately, your medical team can help manage any side effects. For example, topical creams are typically used to treat skin problems, and inflammation is treated with oral medications.

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Get Mesothelioma Radiation Therapy

New research is helping doctors better understand how radiation therapy can be used to fight mesothelioma. This includes learning more about the most effective ways to administer radiation and which patients can benefit most from this treatment.

For more information about receiving radiation therapy from a mesothelioma specialist, contact Mesothelioma Hope today. Our Patient Advocates will answer any questions about radiation therapy and help you find a radiation oncologist.