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During the course of your mesothelioma diagnosis and treatment, you will come into contact with many different health care professionals, including physicians and specialists.
MesoLink.org can help you get an appointment with the best Mesothelioma Doctors and Specialists in your area. Fill out the form below and one of our qualified treatment experts will contact you with more information on this program.
You probably have a primary health care provider with whom you have been interacting for many years. This is the person from whom you are most likely to seek medical attention when your mesothelioma symptoms become severe enough to compel you to seek treatment for them.
Pleural mesothelioma symptoms typically include shortness of breath particularly upon exertion, wheezing and a dry, hacking, unproductive cough. Occasionally, patients may also experience chest pains associated with pleural effusion, a buildup of fluid within the chest. Chest pain and respiratory difficulties are also symptoms of pericardial mesothelioma. Peritoneal mesothelioma symptoms will include abdominal pain and ascites, a buildup of fluid within the abdomen.
If your primary health care provider is familiar with your occupational history of asbestos exposure, he or she will order preliminary diagnostic tests including imaging studies such as chest x-rays, CT scans and MRIs. If these tests are suggestive of mesothelioma, you will be referred to a pulmonologist for a tissue biopsy.
A pulmonologist is a physician specializing in lung diseases. Your pulmonologist will perform your biopsy by way of a thoracoscopy, the insertion of a small cannula between your ribs. In some cases, however, it may be necessary for a surgeon to obtain the tissue biopsy through a procedure, called a thoracotomy, that surgically opens the chest.
Once the diagnosis of mesothelioma has been made definitively, you will be referred to a medical oncologist who is a physician who specializes in the treatment of cancer. Your oncologist will determine how advanced your mesothelioma is at the time of diagnosis, a process called staging, and help you make decisions about the appropriate treatment options to pursue. Depending upon the staging of your disease, treatment options include surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy. If you pursue chemotherapy, your oncologist will be the physician responsible for coordinating that process.
A thoracic surgeon is a surgeon who has trained extensively in surgical procedures involving the organs of the thoracic cavity, the lungs and other components of the respiratory system, the heart, the diaphragm, the esophagus and the chest wall. Surgery is a common treatment for mesothelioma that is diagnosed early in the disease process. Specialized mesothelioma surgeries include a procedure that removes all or part of the diseased lung called a pleurectomy/decortication and a procedure that removes the diseased lung as well as affected parts of the pericardium, pleura and chest wall called an extrapleural pneumonectomy.
Radiation is a type of mesothelioma treatment that kills mesothelioma tumor cells through the application of targeted particles or waves. Although it has not been shown to increase the life expectancy of mesothelioma patients effectively when used alone, radiation is a successful treatment option for mesothelioma when combined with surgery and chemotherapy. A radiologist is a physician who specializes in using imaging technology for diagnostic purposes, while a radiation oncologist uses radiation as a treatment modality.
Would you like to find out more about the role physicians play in mesothelioma treatment? MesoLink.org publishes a free information packet that you can obtain by mail, simply fill out the form above.
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