MESOTHELIOMA CANCER

Mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer in which malignant cells are found in the mesothelium, a protective sac that covers most of the body’s internal organs. The majority of people who are diagnosed with this deadly form of cancer have worked in an industry that caused them to inhale asbestos particles. The cells of the mesothelium can divide without warning and when this division happens they can invade and damage anything nearby; for example, lymph nodes, lungs, chest, or stomach organs. These cancer cells can metastasize from the original starting point to any other part of the body but in most cases the mesothelioma can start in the pleura or peritoneum areas. This is a rare form of cancer and we still don’t know how many cases there are in the United States. Cases are being reported but the unfortunate thing is that it sometimes takes up to 50 years to have symptoms.

Some of the symptoms of mesothelioma cancer can be shortness of breath, weight loss, chest pain, stomach swelling, trouble swallowing or general swelling in the face or body. Another scary thing about these symptoms is that they are not easily diagnosed. They are similar to other conditions such as heart problems, lung cancer, and irritable bowel syndrome. Make sure if you are of the age where this may be something you need to look into you get a CT scan, MRI and/or thoracoscopy. The CT scan will take a series of pictures of the entire body that can be read from a computer as well as a MRI. These pictures can be read on a large screen and then printed out. The most important thing about these tests is to rule out you having mesothelioma cancer.

We all hope no one is diagnosed with mesothelioma cancer but if you are seek treatment right away. If a biopsy is needed a surgeon will remove a small portion of the affected area and have it examined by a pathologist. The thoracoscopy is a procedure where the doctor makes a small cut through the chest wall and puts a thin lighted tube called a thoracoscope into the chest between two ribs. This particular procedure will allow your physician to obtain tissue samples. There are many tests that can be performed and you must submit to all that are recommended. The bottom line is that at this time there is no cure to mesothelioma cancer and as a matter of fact there are not many cases where the patient has survived. The more the medical industry learns about this deadly disease the better it will be for those who have been exposed to asbestos and have contracted mesothelioma cancer. If you or anyone you know has been diagnosed with mesothelioma cancers please give them our website information right away.

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