Asbestos Cancer Treatment Options

Treatment for asbestos cancer is determined according to the extent and location and type of the cancer. The most common treatment options are surgery, radiation therapy and chemotherapy. They can be performed alone, or in combination (often referred to as multi-modality), and each technique is described below.

Surgery means the doctor may remove the cancerous area and the tissue surrounding it.

Radiation therapy, or "radiotherapy", uses high-energy rays to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors. This technique affects the cancer cells only in the treated area. There are two types of radiotherapy: external radiation and internal radiation therapy. The difference between them is that external radiation is generated through a machine, while internal radiation therapy is brought straight to the source of the cancer by sending radioactive materials into the body through small tubes.

Chemotherapy uses anticancer drugs to kill the cancer cells in the body. Where internal radiation therapy affects only the place where the cancer cells had been found, chemotherapy can kill cancer cells throughout the body. This is done by injection.

In addition to traditional treatments, new cancer treatments are continually being tested through medical research studies. These treatments are called clinical trials, and they help researchers determine whether new treatments are safe and effective for general use, while giving patients with few treatment options an opportunity to try new treatments.

Learn more about clinical trials