Find a Mesothelioma Cancer Center
You do not want to simply select a center from a large list. You need to take a lot of things into consideration. There is help for that. For a complete listing of every cancer center, please consider doing other kinds of searches or visiting other reputable health and medical websites.
What to Look for in a Cancer Center
Experience with Multiple Types of Mesothelioma
Each stage of this cancer will have its own factors that must be considered. You have to be sure that you are selecting a center that has the most experience with the different stages of cancer and the treatments that are offered.
Location
You will want to find a center that has treatment options that are close to you because you will be traveling there a lot. If you cannot find one close to you then you should see what is offered. It may be worth traveling to.
Multi-Disciplinary Treatment
Be sure that everyone is going to work together. Will they be able to get your information from the doctor’s office? Are they willing to? Will everyone work together and be on the same team? These are important questions to answer.
Multi-Stage Experience
Each stage is different. You have to make sure that the center you are selecting will specialize in the stage you have. This will impact your treatment options as well as this is very important.
Surgical Experience
Find a cancer center that has mesothelioma doctors on staff. If you are dealing with a center that is not as advanced they may not consider surgery. It is best to work with those that know when this is an option and they are able to handle this for you.
Insurance Acceptance
Finding a center that accepts your insurance is a must because it is very expensive. If you have insurance then you should also find a location that can offer you clinical trials to help with the cost as well.
Patients Designations and Affiliations
Look for centers that have a great deal of success. Find these by looking for a NCI-designation from The National Cancer Institute and/or an affiliation with a major university. They often have the most funding for research, clinical trials, specialists that are the best, and new technologies.
Availability of Clinical Trials
If you are looking at the larger cancer centers you will see they have the largest clinical trials. This is a great option when you are dealing with this type of cancer.