Alternative Medicine
The term alternative medicine is used to describe any practices for the treatment of diseases or disorders that are generally not recognized by the medical community as "standard".
One will often find alternative medicine described as "treatment not derived from modern medical science." Indeed, alternative medicine often has a connection with spiritual or metaphysical beliefs, including non-Western practices or medical traditions.
In the treatment of cancer patients, including those with mesothelioma, alternative medical practices or medicines are often used in conjunction with standard cancer treatments, like chemotherapy or radiation, as "complementary" medicine, but there are a handful of patients that choose to forego traditional, often invasive medicines and medical procedures, instead opting for alternative treatments, which are generally less invasive.
Alternative medicine for the treatment of mesothelioma might include:
- Acupuncture - An ancient Chinese method of relieving pain that many cancer patients often try in the quest to improve their quality of life while fighting their disease. Acupuncture - the insertion of long needles at particular points in the body - should be done by a trained practitioner.
- Massage - Various forms of massage therapy have been known to help alleviate both pain and stress in cancer patients. Massage, which works by applying tension, pressure, and motion to the soft tissues of the body, which include tendons, muscles, ligaments, and lymphatic tissue, can help promote relaxation and has been known to also help reduce nausea caused by treatments such as chemotherapy.
- Meditation - Similar to massage, meditation is known to generate a state of relaxation, therefore reducing stress. Proponents of this alternative medicine also claim that it increases the body's immune function.
- Herbs and supplements - Though most are not approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), many patients swear by a daily regimen of herbal supplements and vitamins. Some claim to boost the immune system while others claim to slow the progression of the cancer itself.
- TENS Therapy - Short for Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation, TENS therapy involves the placing of electrodes on the nerve pathway, which then produce an electrical current that is said to stimulate the production of a morphine-like substance in the brain. This substance may serve to reduce pain. Some mesothelioma patients claim moderate success with this alternative medicine.
