The other day I was contacted by an awesome organization called Mesothelioma.com. They have asked Custom Comfort Massage Therapy, LLC to help promote awareness of malignant mesothelioma, a rare form of cancer that effects the lining of internal organs (called mesothelium), most often the lungs and abdomen.
For many years, massage therapy has been known to be a very effective complimentary form of treatment for cancer patients. In fact, one of my classmates at UCMT went into the field partially due to knowing the benefits of massage therapy during her own battle with leukemia as a child. The wonderful article below–sent to me by Mesothelioma.com–further illustrates the value of massage therapy for cancer patients.
Custom Comfort Massage Therapy, LLC is honored to help patients enduring any type of cancer by being an additional resource to their current treatment options. And we are thrilled to be included in the directory listing on Mesothelioma.com, a leading source of information on the web for those with mesothelioma.
Thank you, Mesothelioma.com, for connecting with us and for all you do!
_____________________________________________________________________________
Therapeutic Massage and Palliative Cancer Therapy
Jack Bleeker
August 7, 2009
In recent years the role of alternative therapies in cancer care has transformed the way many patients cope with illness and related side of effects. Older paradigms suggest that cancer can only be effectively treated with traditional treatments such as surgical resection, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. Those who refuse this notion seek alternative therapies outside of their treatment regimen to experience relaxation as well as an ease in side-effects associated with traditional treatment regimens, including those caused by chemotherapy drugs.
Today, not only patients but also the medical establishment recognizes the importance of alternative therapies, and particularly the importance of massage therapy in comprehensive cancer care. Massage, like most alternative cancer therapies, is most effective when used in conjunction with traditional treatments. Many oncologists, such as Dr. David Sugarbaker recommend the utilizations of alternative therapies such as massage to complement traditional therapies.
Therapeutic massage is unique in that it remedies the feeling of isolation which is experienced by many people who battle a difficult disease. The human contact that massage therapy soothes the psychological stresses that cancer patients endure such as feelings of being overwhelmed by the nature of their diagnosis, family implications, and other difficulties associated with cancer treatments.
Often, the most valuable treatments to patients battling a difficult diagnosis are those that allow the patient to be as comfortable and relaxed as possible. Patients battling aggressive cancers, such as mesothelioma, often forgo traditional treatments which will put their body through a great deal of stress and discomfort in favor of those such as massage, which provide peace of mind and comfort. Patients undergoing traditional treatments such as chemotherapy often find that therapies that are able to relax their mind and body, will dramatically lessen side effects like nausea, restlessness, and fever.
As with any treatment, the benefits of massage therapy are to be determined on a case by case circumstance. However, given the positive experience many patients have experienced, it is certainly worth exploring. Maximizing your cancer therapies with cooperation between patient, family, and physician will encourage patients to live healthy and comfortably, which is the goal of all comprehensive therapies.
Visit Mesothelioma.com to learn more about the value of massage therapy as an emerging therapy in palliative cancer care for mesothelioma patients.