Case Study For Mesothelioma Attorney Florida
THE PAIN AFFAIR
Introduction
Here is a narrative by Robin Steinem*, a mesothelioma specialist at one of the cancer centers in Tampa, Florida. She discusses palliative care or pain management specifically for mesotheliomic patients. According to her, just because someone has been diagnosed with mesothelioma it should not condemn his/her life to continuous pain and agony.
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What is palliative care?
“As a mesothelioma specialist it is very imperative for us that the patients who are under treatment get suitable and good palliative care. By palliative care what I mean is that to manage the pain of the patient by making it as comfortable as possible for him/her and the family. For not only is the patient alone in suffering but it also takes a heavy physical and emotional toll on family and friends.
Mesotheliomic complaints
Often mesotheliomic patients complain of throbbing pain, labored breathing, weakness, mouth dryness, diminished hunger, gastro-intestinal problems, skin troubles, uneasiness and misery. All these conditions come under palliative care. Pain however happens to be on top of the pyramid.
Breathing problems
Labored breathing can be dealt with by teaching the patients meditation techniques, having their position changed, giving pills and oxygen doses.
Weakness issues
A mesotheliomic patient will experience various forms of weakness through out the course of their treatments and it could range from moderate to severe. These are handled by teaching the patients certain exercises, prescribing them some basic nutritional guidelines and educating them on stress management.
Mouth dryness
Mouth dryness in cancer patients is mostly due to the medications they ingest. These medications usually comprise of anti-depressants, tranquilizers, pain killers etc. We advise patients to drink lots of clear fluids, suck on ice chips and chew gum. Anything that gets the saliva going and keeps their mouth moist; as mouth dryness often leads to sores and ulcers.
Diminished hunger
Chemo sessions and radiation treatments often kill the appetite of a mesotheliomic patient. They go through severe bouts of nausea and vomiting episodes, making it very difficult to keep their food down. Since this way they lose out on a lot of critical nutrients it is very important that they somehow compensate for it. Usually we give them clear liquid diets, fluid diets and soft food diets. Pills are also given to make them feel hungry or to increase their weight.
Gastro issues
Vomiting and diarrhea are two main gastro issues that affect a cancer patient. We give them pills specifically to deal with these two issues.
Skin issues
Due to the side effects of cancer medications and treatments, the patient has a lot of skin problems such as inflammation, dryness, rashes, blisters, boils, abscesses and ulcers. For these problems simple remedies are prescribed such as keeping their skin moist by rubbing it gently with creams and oil free moisturizers, drinking lots of water and other fluids and to maintain a very high standard of cleanliness.
Pain
Mesotheliomic patients complain mostly about pain and which we have ways and means to deal with. Infact we have pain management specialists that solely offer their expertise in pain management. They help in minimizing or in controlling specific types of pain.
Causes of pain
However before I get into how you can control pain due to mesotheliomic conditions it is important to know what brings about painful conditions in mesotheliomic patients. One reason is that a mesotheliomic tumor could be pushing on some bone, certain highly sensitive nerves or internal body parts. This causes pain to the patient. Then because of surgical procedures, chemo sessions and radiation therapies the patient could have painful episodes. |
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Types of pain medications
Because each patient’s pain is unique to his/her own body pain specialists come up with specific plans in dealing with them. If the patient is suffering from mild to moderate pain then they are prescribed nanopioids (these are non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs). For moderate to severe pain patients are given opioids (family of synthetic drugs with pain-relieving properties) and for breakthrough pain, rapid onset opioids are given to patients.
In conclusion all I have to say is that cancer and mesotheliomic patients have to no longer suffer silently in pain. Those days are long gone. You should insist upon getting pain ridding medications from your qualified oncologist or a pain management specialist so that you can lead a quality and minimal pain free life.”
- Names of people have been changed to protect their privacy
- Do consult your doctor about the above mentioned medications
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