Cancer patients often deal with insomnia, which can be caused by side effects of treatment or medications, or even stress. We'll discuss natural ways to treat sleep problems, as well as medications that may help. For more information visit us at www.asbestos.com

1. Improving Your Sleep When You Have
Mesothelioma
Dana Nolan
Mental Health Counselor

2. Mesothelioma and Sleep Problems
Serious health challenges (like mesothelioma)
affect sleep
Stress and worry affect sleep
Pain and treatment side effects
can interrupt our sleep
(800) 615-2270

3. Personal and Society Problems Associated
with Sleep Loss
 100,000 auto crashes and 1500 deaths are
attributed each year to sleep deprivation.
 $100 billion per year in lost productivity,
medical expenses, sick leave and property damage
is due to sleep loss.
 Poor quality of life: cranky, poor concentration,
lethargy and increased mistakes occur when we are
sleep deprived.
(800) 615-2270

4. What Happens When We Sleep?
Divided into two separate types or phases:
NREM (non rapid eye movement)
REM (rapid eye movement)
Both phases have very different
functions and we cycle regularly
between these phases throughout
our sleep.
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5. NREM Sleep (stages 1-4)
What happens:
Metabolism slows
Brain is least active
Blood pressure, heart rate,
breathing rate are slowest
Digestion increases
VITAL repair and renewal of
body tissues and immune system
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6. NREM (con’t)
 Stage 1: lasts 5-15 minutes and we feel
like we are drifting in and out of sleep.
 Stage 2: lasts about 15 minutes and we
lose awareness of our surroundings.
Heart rate, breathing and brain waves
slow.
 Stages 3 and 4: lasts about an hour. We
are very hard to rouse in these stages.
Body makes repairs at a cellular level.
(800) 615-2270

7. REM Sleep
 Brain is very active and heart rate
and breathing rate are faster.
 Voluntary muscles are unable to
move.
 Cognitive restoration takes place.
Our brain files away memories of
important events during the day and
disregards in insignificant events.
 Psychological recuperation and
working out of emotional issues.
(800) 615-2270

8. REM (con’t)
 It is during this phase of sleep that we
usually dream.
 Eyes move during REM sleep and it is
believed that our eyes move according
to what we are dreaming about.
 Heart rate and breathing rate
correspond to our activity in our
dream.
(800) 615-2270

9. Cycling through NREM and REM
 We typically cycle through all these phases several
times during the night.
 It takes about 90 minutes to cycle through all the
phases.
 We spend more time in NREM sleep in the first half
of the night and more time in REM in the last half of
the night.
(800) 615-2270

10. Stages of Sleep Throughout the Night
(800) 615-2270

11. Mesothelioma and Cancer
Many reasons why sleep can be affected
when someone has mesothelioma.
Treatment-related factors: chemo-induced
bone pain or neuropathy, nausea, post-
surgical pain, steroid-induced insomnia.
Psychological factors: anxiety can cause
insomnia and depression can cause
hypersomnia (too much sleep).
(800) 615-2270

12. How Mesothelioma Affects Sleep
Disease-related factors: discomfort due to fluid build
up, pain related to tumor growth.
Lifestyle factors: increased caffeine intake to combat
fatigue, lack of exercise and change in daily
routine/schedule.
(800) 615-2270

13. Maximizing Sleep When You Have
Mesothelioma
Medications
Pharmaceutical
Over the counter medications
 Supplements
(800) 615-2270

14. Medications
Two kinds of medications prescribed for sleep problems:
hypnotics and anti-anxiety (benzodiazepines) medications
Hypnotics: Ambien, Lunesta, Restoril and Sonata
(best to help you sleep a full 8 hours).
Benzodiazepines: Xanax, Valium, Klonopin, Ativan
(best if anxiety or worrying is keeping you from falling asleep
or staying asleep as they work for a few hours).
Clinical research shows that these medications are very
effective in helping sleep problems in cancer patients.
(800) 615-2270

15. Over the Counter Sleep Aids
 Pain reliever sleep aids (Tylenol or Advil PM) and
Unisom are all antihistamine-based (like Benadryl) sleep
aids which are available over the counter.
 Some say that they feel “hung-over” and feel even more
tired the next day after using these.
 Both pain-reliever sleep aids can have adverse affects.
Tylenol can lead to liver/kidney damage and
chemotherapy is straining those organs. Regular use of
Advil can lead to stomach upset and again patients on
chemo may already be experiencing stomach upset.
(800) 615-2270

16. OTC Sleep Aids (con’t)
 If using OTC sleep aids, just stick to antihistamine-
based meds like Unisom or Sominex unless pain
relief is needed.
 All prescription or over the counter medications are
recommended for short term insomnia in normal
populations.
(800) 615-2270

17. Natural Supplements for Sleep
 Melatonin - relatively safe supplement
(see www.sleepfoundation.org for
information on use of melatonin) for
sleep. Mixed results in clinical studies on
effectiveness in improving sleep.
 Valerian root - National Cancer Institute
is currently conducting a clinical trial to
see if this supplement is safe for cancer
patients and helpful to improve sleep.
(800) 615-2270

18. Natural Supplements (con’t)
 Chamomile- either root extract or tea
has been found to be safe to use and
reportedly has a calming or relaxing
effect. But, clinical research doesn’t
support its use for sleep problems.
 Production of herbal supplements are
not regulated by the FDA and caution
should be used. Always tell your
oncologist if you are taking any
supplements as they may need to be
discontinued before surgery or certain
treatments.
(800) 615-2270

19. Conclusions
 Difficulty sleeping or poor quality sleep is a common
problem in our society.
 Many reasons why a mesothelioma diagnosis can
lead to poor sleep.
 Many prescription, over the counter sleep aids and
supplements provide options for short term sleep
problems.
 We will offer a future presentation on some
behavioral and environmental suggestions to help
with poor sleep.
(800) 615-2270

20. Contact Information
1-800-615-2270
(800) 615-2270