Pain Management for Mesothelioma Patients
While treating mesothelioma is the main focus of your medical program, in many mesothelioma cases managing your pain becomes as critical, especially if treatments have been ineffective, or when treatments themselves cause a great deal of pain. Several options are available to help you deal with pain.
Develop a plan
Once you have described your pain, your doctor will work with you to develop a treatment plan. Doctors normally prescribe medicines as the first line of defense for treating cancer pain. Those may include opioids (called narcotics, the strongest possible pain relievers), non-opioids (such as acetaminophen and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, or NSAIDs), and adjuvant analgesics (medicines not primarily designed to relieve pain but that can help do so in some situations). Approaches such as relaxation techniques or biofeedback, physical therapy, anesthesia procedures, and surgical procedures can also help treat some mesothelioma pain.
Non-opioids
Non-opioids like acetaminophen (e.g., Tylenol®), and NSAIDs such as ibuprofen-best for mild pain-can relieve superficial pain, bone pain, muscle pain, and some other types of pain. Usually you will take the maximum daily dose but not more; too much may cause significant side effects such as organ damage. Side effects vary, but in general NSAIDs can lead to toxicity in the digestive system, and even to ulcers and bleeding. They must be used cautiously if you have any bleeding or clotting disorders as they slow the blood's ability to clot.
Opioids
Opioids (including codeine, oxycodone, morphine, fentanyl, and hydromorphone) vary in their ability to relieve pain but in general are excellent medicines for helping with pain you may have because of mesothelioma. Opioids (morphine, hydromorphone, oxycodone, fentanyl, methadone, and levorphanol) may be given orally or intravenously. But they can have side effects, and also be addictive, so it's important to have your doctor regulate the dosage for you.
Adjuvant Analgesics
A variety of adjuvant analgesics (medicines designed for other purposes) may help relieve some kinds of pain in certain situations. Some antidepressants relieve neuropathic pain as well as decrease depression. Anticonvulsants (normally used for seizures) can help with relieving tingling and burning pain, such as neuropathic pain. Steroids can help ease pain that's connected to swelling and/or with bone pain. Pain-killing drugs can be applied to the skin, injected into the spinal canal, and even sometimes given orally for relieving tingling, burning-type pain.