Mesothelioma Cancer - Dealing With Pain

Pain is an unpleasant sensation. Most mesothelioma patients suffer from pain to a certain degree. It can be mild but it can also be acute or chronic. Acute pain is severe pain that comes quickly but usually lasts for a short time. On the other hand chronic pain is more persistent and lasts for a longer period of time. Pain arises both from the tumor itself and from the treatment taken. Chemotherapy, radiation and surgery can cause pain. Perhaps it is chemotherapy drugs that cause the most discomforts.
Chemotherapy usually cause discomforts as much or sometimes even more than pain caused by the tumor itself. The severity and location of pain depends also on the type of mesothelioma you have and it generally increases as the disease advances. Mesothelioma patients, because they are generally quite advanced in their age, may have other types of pain from other types of diseases. Different individuals have different tolerance to pain and so pain is a subjective sensation.
Pain has a large bearing on one's quality of life and so it is very important that it is adequately controlled. There are many methods that can relieve pain. Medications play an important part and can be administered orally, by injection or by patches. Mild pain can be controlled by over-the-counter medications. It is however important to inform your physician on any over-the-counter medications you may take since these may interfere with your treatment.
Therefore do not take any over-the-counter medications without prior informing your physician about it. More powerful drugs need to be administered for acute or chronic pain but it is important that such medications are strictly monitored by your physician because they might have some undesirable side effects. Among others this may include nausea and vomiting, constipation and drowsiness. Pain can reduce your appetite which is very dangerous because you need to be appropriately nourished in order to be more able to fight the disease. Strong medications can also be administered at home through a catcher. There are also a number of other methods that do not rely on medications that can help you to reduce your pain such as acupuncture, mediation and others. Talk with your physician about them.
It is important that pain is addressed as soon as possible since the more time you take to address it the more it will be difficult to control. So take action immediately. Reduction of pain depends on an appropriate collaboration with your physician. It is important that you describe your pain to your physician accurately such as its severity, location and when it is more acute. Since pain is an individualized matter, it is important that your physician addresses your particular needs. Pain does not only affect the patients but all the family will be affected. Family members may be hurt seeing you suffering. However they also can do their part to ease your pain.