Photodynamic:

The scientists and the researchers are continuously making progress developing and discovering new vistas of technology. Cancer is a disease that has been studied since centuries and new treatment methods are formulated by and by.A very experimental treatment, photodynamic therapy (PDT) uses light to kill mesothelioma cancer cells. Initially, the patient receives a photosensitizing agent that collects in the cancerous cells but not in healthy cells. A photosensitizer is a drug that makes the cancer cells vulnerable and sensitive to light of specific wavelength.After the cells have been sensitized, fiberoptic cables are placed in the body (usually through open–chest surgery) in order to focus light of just the right frequency on the tumor. This causes the photosensitizer to produce a toxic oxygen molecule which kills the cell.Photodynamic therapy makes the skin and eyes sensitive to light for 6 weeks or more after treatment. Other temporary side effects of PDT include nausea and vomiting. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the use of PDT for non–small cell lung cancer and cancer of the esophagus. However, the procedure is still in the early experimental stages as a possible mesothelioma treatment.

Immunotherapy:

Immunotherapy (or biological therapy) attempts to use the body’s own immune defenses against cancerous cells. It includes gene therapy and the use of cytokine proteins such as interferons and interleukins.Gene therapy is still in the clinical trial phase. Using an “adenovirus” for delivery, a “suicide gene” is inserted directly into the tumor. This gene makes the cells sensitive to otherwise ineffective drugs such as glanciclovir. Treatment with the drug then should destroy only rapidly dividing cells—i.e., the cancer cells—leaving healthy cells unharmed. 

Cytokines are proteins which occur naturally in the human body, and which are are similar to hormones. The cytokine protein Interleukin–2 (IL2) is capable of stimulating the growth of immune system cells called “T–cells.”In healthy individuals, T–cells search out malignant or virally infected cells and kill them.

Interleukin–2 may be used to increase the number of T–cells to combat cancers. Using IL2 as a treatment for pleural mesothelioma is still in the experimental stages. 

Interferons are another cytokine protein which inhibits the growth of malignant cells, as well as enhances the immune system. Like interleukins, interferons are being tested to see if they help increase the body’s response to mesothelioma. These new experimental treatments are making progress gradually in the world of cancer. Patients suffering from mesothelioma are informed about these methods of treatment. Some people are reluctant for they normally trust the already used methods. The fear of any negative possibility scares the cancer patients. However, with the passage of time these too will become commonly used.

Share This