Additional Treatments

Immunotherapy
Immunotherapy is a treatment for mesothelioma cancer that has mixed-results. The procedure entails using certain vaccines to help boost the body’s natural immune system. Some patients experience severe side effects from immunotherapy, such as fever, loss of appetite, weight loss, and muscle wasting. However, the use of a drug called Interferon Alpha has shown promise in immunotherapy, with patients experiencing a lesser amount of side effects and a greater overall decrease in mesothelioma tumor size.

Heated Intraoperative Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy
Heated Intraoperative Intraperitoneal Chemothrapy (HIIC) is a treatment for mesothelioma cancer in which a surgeon removes all or part of a mesothelioma tumor and then directly administers a chemotherapy medication into the abdomen. The chemotherapy is left in place for upwards of two hours and then drained from the abdominal cavity. HIIC has a three-fold approach. First, higher doses of chemotherapy can be used in this way. Second, heating the chemotherapy agent aids in destroying cancer cells. And finally, the heated medication allows for better penetration of cancerous tumors.