Pain Management

Because many people are diagnosed with mesothelioma in the late stages of the disease, they are often already in pain and dealing with symptoms of the disease at the time of their diagnosis. Controlling pain is a critical part of dealing with mesothelioma.

Assessing Your Pain and Communicating with Your Doctor

The better you and your doctors can understand and control your pain, the better your quality of life will be and the better your response to treatment is likely to be as well. Pain management is a dynamic process. The level of pain you experience can change over time, as can your response to pain management therapies. Monitor yourself carefully to see if your pain is interfering with your enjoyment of time with family or of favorite hobbies. You may want to ask for help from your loved ones in monitoring changes in your response to pain. The more information you have collected about your pain and how it is affecting you, the easier it will be to communicate effectively with you doctor. And communicating with your doctor is vitally important to controlling pain associated with mesothelioma.

Palliative Treatment

Palliative treatment (also called palliative care) focuses on relieving the symptoms of the patient's disease and improving the quality of the patient's life. Palliative care does not attempt to cure the patient's illness, but it can make the patient more comfortable. It can also address emotional, social and spiritual needs of the patient as well as physical needs like pain management.

Alternative Therapies

In addition to more traditional pain treatments, there are also a number of alternative therapy options to heighten the patient's quality of life and manage the patient's pain. These alternative therapies can be combined with traditional medical treatment options. Many patients benefit from alternative therapies such as massage, meditation, acupuncture, or TENS therapy. Such treatments are known to relieve pain and stress, both of which can accompany a debilitating disease like mesothelioma.