Written By: Camryn Keeble
Mesothelioma Palliative Care
Palliative care for mesothelioma focuses on improving a patient’s quality of life and providing comprehensive care to address their physical, emotional and psychological needs.
Medically Reviewed By
Dr. Stephen Williams
Precision Oncology Scientist
Medically Reviewed By
Dr. Stephen Williams
Precision Oncology Scientist
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Important Facts About Mesothelioma Pain Management
- Palliative care helps manage the pain and symptoms of mesothelioma.
- Options for palliative care include surgery, chemotherapy, pain management, emotional and psychological support.
- Palliative care can also include relaxation techniques, nutritional support and spiritual counseling.
It is important for patients to discuss their specific symptoms, needs and concerns with their healthcare team to develop a personalized palliative care plan.
Overview of Palliative Care for Mesothelioma
The main goal of palliative care for mesothelioma is to improve quality of life by addressing the physical, emotional and psychological challenges of the disease.
Palliative care can be provided alongside mesothelioma treatment aimed at controlling the disease or used on its own when curative options are no longer available. The purpose is to improve the overall well-being of mesothelioma patients and their families by addressing their unique needs and maintaining their independence and dignity throughout their cancer journey.
Ways palliative care can improve quality of life are:
- Draining fluid build-up from the mesothelium (pleura, peritoneum or pericardium), which allows organs to function properly
- Improving patient comfort by reducing pressure and pain in the chest, abdomen or heart
- Providing patients with emotional and psychosocial support to help them cope with their diagnosis
- Offering support, comfort and guidance to the family, caregivers and loved ones
Palliative care specialists may recommend a combination of medical, emotional, spiritual and psychological support to achieve the individual needs of the patient. Some examples include pain management, massage therapy, relaxation techniques, optimizing nutrition and counseling.
Key Elements of Mesothelioma Palliative Care
Palliative care involves various methods of managing mesothelioma symptoms, pain control and support options for patients and loved ones. A key element of effective palliative care is establishing open communication between the patient and physician, which allows the patient to take a more active role in their care and improves the patient’s ability to make informed decisions.
Palliative care for mesothelioma is achieved with:
- Symptom management – Palliative care focuses on controlling pain and managing symptoms affecting daily life like shortness of breath, nausea and fatigue to help improve quality of life.
- Emotional and psychological support – Mesothelioma can be mentally and emotionally challenging for patients and their families. Counseling and support groups can provide coping strategies to help overcome some of the anxiety, depression and grief mesothelioma patients face.
- Communication and decision-making – Providing education and open communication with physicians can create an opportunity for patients to better understand their diagnosis, the treatment options available and the ability to make informed decisions about their care.
- Support for caregivers – Caregivers play a significant role in caring for mesothelioma patients. Providing resources, support and guidance can help caregivers cope with the challenges they face and improve quality of life for both the patient and family.
- Spiritual support – Chaplains and counselors are often available to provide emotional and spiritual support to patients and families, in accordance with their beliefs and values.
- Advance care planning – Social workers encourage patients to take an active role in discussions and decisions making regarding their advanced care plan. This includes developing living wills and other guidelines to ensure the patient’s treatment preferences are respected and followed.
The Difference Between Palliative and Hospice Care
Palliative and hospice care share many similarities. However, they are not one in the same, and people should know what defines hospice care for mesothelioma.
They both improve quality of life and provide comfort to mesothelioma patients. The care is tailored to the individual patient’s needs and goals, regardless of their stage of illness. The main difference between the two is when each type of care is provided.
Palliative care is a collaboration of medical treatment and holistic approaches that manage symptoms and side effects. It can be introduced at any of the 4 stages of mesothelioma and should be an integral part of every treatment plan. Palliative care can be used on its own or alongside aggressive therapies (chemotherapy, immunotherapy or surgery) aimed at killing cancer cells and slow the progression of the disease.
Hospice care is a specialized type of palliative care reserved for patients in the end stage of mesothelioma. Hospice care for mesothelioma is intended for patients no longer receiving curative or life-extending treatment.
To qualify for hospice care, a physician must determine that the patient’s life expectancy is six months or less. The focus shifts to comfort, dignity and emotional support for the patient and family during the end-of-life phase. Making the decision to enter hospice care is not giving up; it is choosing how you want to live at the end of life.
Mesothelioma Palliative Care Treatments
Palliative care treatment for mesothelioma may include: surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. The surgeries are typically minimally invasive, require small incisions and have short recovery periods.
Palliative Surgeries for Mesothelioma
Palliative surgeries aim to relieve symptoms by draining excess fluid from the chest or abdominal cavity, easing pain and helping nearby organs function more effectively.
In cases of pleural mesothelioma, these procedures can help the lungs to expand more easily, improving breathing and overall comfort. For cases of peritoneal mesothelioma, these procedures address pain in the abdomen.
Palliative surgeries used to drain fluid buildup for mesothelioma include:
- Pleurodesis (pleural mesothelioma) – Seals the pleura to prevent fluid from accumulating around the lungs
- Thoracentesis (pleural mesothelioma) – Removes fluid from the pleural space to ease chest pressure and improve breathing
- Paracentesis (peritoneal mesothelioma) – Drains fluid from the abdominal cavity to reduce bloating and discomfort
- Pericardiocentesis (pericardial mesothelioma) – Removes fluid from around the heart to relieve pressure and improve cardiac function
Other Palliative Care Treatments
Palliative care is a vital part of treatment for mesothelioma: managing symptoms and improving quality of life. While fluid removal (like thoracentesis) is a common palliative procedure, there are other treatment options that provide symptom relief and comfort throughout the patient’s journey.
These treatment options include pain management procedures, holistic therapies and other medical interventions.
Palliative Pain Medications & Procedures
These therapies focus on reducing pain and improving physical comfort:
- Narcotics (opioids) – Manage moderate to severe pain
- Analgesics/NSAIDS – Manage mild to moderate pain and inflammation
- Nerve blockers – Target specific areas of localized pain
- Acupuncture – Relieves pain and improves energy flow
Holistic Palliative Care Treatment
These therapies enhance the patient’s overall well-being:
- Oxygen therapy – increases oxygenation and eases shortness of breath
- Inhalers and nebulizer treatment – Helps clear airways and improve respiratory function
- Breathing exercises – Enhances lung capacity, clears secretions and reduces stress
- Massage therapy – Improves circulation, relaxes muscle tension and promotes relaxation
Medical Palliative Care Treatment
Standard cancer therapies such as chemotherapy and radiation therapy relieve symptoms, slow the progression of mesothelioma and improve quality of life:
- Chemotherapy – Shrinks tumors and reduces the pressure on surrounding organs; relieves mesothelioma symptoms; and can improve comfort and life expectancy
- Radiation therapy – Shrinks tumors and relieves pressure and pain in the chest area; primarily used for pleural mesothelioma; and can improve patient comfort and respiratory function
Mesothelioma specialists work with a multidisciplinary team to provide an individualized palliative care treatment plan that is tailored to the patient’s specific needs and goals. These treatment options can be used alone or in combination with other therapies depending on the patient’s disease stage, severity of symptoms and overall health.
Finding Palliative Care for Your Mesothelioma
Managing symptoms and controlling pain are two important parts of mesothelioma palliative care. From the time of diagnosis to the final stages of the disease, mesothelioma doctors should focus not only on fighting the cancer but also maintaining the patient’s quality of life throughout their cancer battle.
Contact our registered nurse, Karen Ritter, to learn more about your options for palliative care treatment: karen@mesotheliomaguide.com.
Frequently Asked Questions About Mesothelioma Palliative Care
What Is Mesothelioma Palliative Care?
Mesothelioma palliative care can reduce the physical and emotional symptoms of mesothelioma. Surgery is one option to relieve pain, pressure and other troubling mesothelioma symptoms. Doctors can drain fluid from the pleura or peritoneum to reduce pressure against the chest wall, abdominal wall and nearby organs. Other palliative care for mesothelioma includes pain medication, holistic therapies, chemotherapy, radiation and psychosocial support.
What Is the Difference Between Palliative Care and Hospice Care?
Palliative care and hospice care both focus on improving the quality of life for mesothelioma patients. Mesothelioma palliative care is provided to patients at every stage of mesothelioma and can be offered alone or in conjunction with life-extending cancer treatment. Hospice is restricted to patients in the end stages of mesothelioma who have stopped all treatment to extend their survival.
Sources & Author
- What is palliative care? MedlinePlus. Retrieved from: https://medlineplus.gov/ency/patientinstructions/000536.htm. Accessed: 04/27/2021.
- Early Palliative Care With Standard Care or Standard Care Alone in Improving Quality of Life of Patients With Incurable Lung or Non-colorectal Gastrointestinal Cancer and Their Family Caregivers. Clinicaltrials.gov. Retrieved from: https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/results/NCT02349412. Accessed: 12/30/19.
- How Early Palliative Care May Benefit Patients With Incurable Cancer. ASCO Post. Retrieved from: https://www.ascopost.com/issues/september-25-2017/how-early-palliative-care-may-benefit-patients-with-incurable-cancer/. Accessed: 01/03/20.
- Review of malignant pleural mesothelioma survival after talc pleurodesis or surgery. Journal of Thoracic Disease. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5756994/. Accessed: 04/26/2021.
- Re-expansion pulmonary edema following thoracentesis. CMAJ. Retrieved from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3001507/. Accessed: 04/26/2021.
- About Your Paracentesis (Abdominal Tap). Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Retrieved from: https://www.mskcc.org/cancer-care/patient-education/paracentesis-abdominal-tap. Accessed: 04/26/2021.
- Pleurodesis. St. Vincent’s Hospital Lung Health. Retrieved from: https://www.svhlunghealth.com.au/procedures/procedures-treatments/pleurodesis. Accessed: 04/26/2021.
- Thoracentesis. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. Retrieved from: https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health-topics/thoracentesis. Accessed: 04/26/2021.
- Learning About Paracentesis. MyHealth.Alberta. Retrieved from: https://myhealth.alberta.ca/Health/aftercareinformation/pages/conditions.aspx?hwid=abo2968. Accessed: 04/26/2021.
- Pericardiocentesis (Pericardial Tap). Healthline. Retrieved from: https://www.healthline.com/health/pericardiocentesis. Accessed: 04/26/2021.
- Palliative Procedures for Malignant Mesothelioma. American Cancer Society. Retrieved from: https://www.cancer.org/cancer/types/malignant-mesothelioma/treating/palliative-procedures.html. Accessed 5/18/2023.
- Chemotherapy for Malignant Mesothelioma. American Cancer Society. Retrieved from: https://www.cancer.org/cancer/types/malignant-mesothelioma/treating/chemotherapy.html. Accessed 5/18/2023.
