Mesothelioma Cancer - Causes and Symptoms

Mesothelioma is a cancer of the lining Mesothel or membrane that protects and most organs in the abdominal cavity. The first layer of the body and the second layer is a pocket of protection. It is a lubricating fluid between the layers to the movement. Mesothel pericardium is recognized when it is the heart, the pleura, the lung and peritoneum, in the abdomen.

In mesothelioma, it is not controlled by the cell responsible for the extra-cellular invasion of proximity to the masses of tissue and organs and cause damage. Above all, it should be noted that mesothelioma begin in the pleura and peritoneum. Cancer and metastases in other parts of the body.

Mesothelioma is mainly due to exposure to asbestos. This is considered an important risk factor. 70% to 80% of patients in the history of exposure to asbestos. There are exceptions for cases were asbestos exposure has been the absence. The situation is more common in men than in women. It was also found that the risk increases with age.

Mesothelioma is a rare disease. Above all, it is said in the context of exposure to asbestos. Asbestos is a mineral collection, as large masses of films or fibers flexible. It is widely used in industrial products like cement, roofing, coatings, textiles, brake linings and insulation. Small particles of asbestos in the air and can be inhaled or swallowed by people who, like workers in the manufacturing companies, etc.

An exhibition for a period can cause asbestosis. Exposure to asbestos increases the risk of mesothelioma and other cancers, such as kidney and larynx. There are limits on exposure to asbestos was in force, in working with minerals. Another interesting aspect is that mesothelioma family members of people who are exposed to asbestos at work show an increased incidence of breast cancer compared with others. Has been assigned to the remains of asbestos particles, according to the clothing, hair, etc at home, the family members.

Cancer is about thirty to forty years, to the surface. The first symptoms are shortness of breath and chest pain, if they change the color of the pleura are affected. If peritoneal cancer is weight loss, swelling and pain in the abdomen, the accumulation of fluid in the abdomen, intestinal obstruction. Fever, anemia and bleeding were also noted irregularities. In severe cases, there is a swelling of the face and neck, difficulty swallowing and pain.

The diagnosis of mesothelioma is very difficult because there are no symptoms. A review of medical history would be very useful, and that exposure to asbestos. X-ray of the chest, abdomen, lung function tests, MRI of the usual tools to help confirm the diagnosis. Biopsy for confirmation and therapy and radiation.

Mesothelioma chemotherapy

Active control of the symptoms of mesothelioma in chemotherapy studied

According to a recent issue of the British medical journal, The Lancet, researchers have been studying the effect of chemotherapy in mesothelioma. Because chemotherapy is not considered a successful treatment for mesothelioma cancer, but a treatment for mesothelioma signs and symptoms of medical professionals to continue the discussion of the usefulness of the procedure in controlling symptoms.

The researchers studied 409 patients of all who suffer from malignant pleural mesothelioma in different parts of the world. Patients were randomly assigned a treatment of symptoms or treatment that included an active control treatment with two chemotherapy drugs. According to the study, "the active symptom control treatments include steroids, bronchodilators, analgesic drugs and palliative radiotherapy."

After the study, patients in both treatment options were compared and, according to investigators, "the addition of chemotherapy to control the symptoms showed a non significant benefit or advances in survival or quality of life" among the victims of mesothelioma.

What is mesothelioma, chemotherapy?

Mesothelioma is a malignant disease in which cancer cells develop in a thin layer of tissue that is the thoracic cavity that covers the lungs, which is also known as the pleura or peritoneum, the tissue lining the abdomen and Most of the bodies, according to the National Cancer Institute (NCI).

According to the American Cancer Society (ACS), chemotherapy is a treatment method that uses chemicals commonly administered through a catheter, pill, injection, or the port, which is usually a round disk of metal or plastic , which is when cancer cells begin to develop abnormal and divide uncontrollably fast. Chemotherapy is given for a variety of reasons, but is based on certain factors such as stage of cancer, a patient's health and age of a patient. For patients with mesothelioma, chemotherapy is not a method of cure, but is administered to patients with mesothelioma for several reasons including:

* Halting the growth and spread of cancer, to control cancer
* Minimize or reduce tumors - this method is also known as neoadjuvant chemotherapy
* The palliative chemotherapy on pain and other symptoms have to be reduced
* The destruction of microscopic disease that remains after a surgical procedure, also known as adjuvant chemotherapy

Chemotherapy is given as a catheter into a large vein in the body or a catheter is attached as a port that is placed on the chest under the skin for a period of time.

Living with Mesothelioma

Unfortunately, victims of mesothelioma receive further setbacks in his life-threatening condition, as currently there is no successful treatment for cancer death. However, a person has the opportunity to participate in a series of clinical trials of the treatment groups, as well as the opportunity to develop mesothelioma a demand for monetary compensation as a means of payment for the condition, which is often associated with the very expensive medical bills.

Mesothelioma Info

Mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer, usually caused by exposure to asbestos. When an individual is diagnosed with the disease, there are many questions which will invariably go through their mind. Perhaps the most important one involves the patient's prognosis. That is, what is the life expectancy for someone diagnosed with mesothelioma?

As with any form of cancer, the survival rate for this condition is heavily dependent on how early it is diagnosed. If the disease is already in an advanced state when it is first detected, it will require far more aggressive treatment, with a reduced chance of success.

Unfortunately, the survival rate for mesothelioma has historically been rather low. Many patients do not survive longer than one year after diagnosis. The disease has often spread significantly before it is diagnosed, making it that much more difficult to treat. This is due to the fact that an individual exposed to asbestos can live for decades before any noticeable symptoms present themselves.

In addition, patients diagnosed with mesothelioma are often 55 years of age or older, and may have other medical conditions which complicate their treatment.

The good news is that there are many long-term survivors of mesothelioma, some of whom have lived a decade or more following diagnosis. Some doctors believe these patients survive longer not because of their particular treatment method, but because of other health characteristics specific to the individual. In general, healthier patients with no other existing medical conditions are more likely to survive longer than those with additional diseases and afflictions.

In terms of raw numbers, statistics show that about 10 percent of individuals with mesothelioma live for at least five years after being diagnosed. About 40 percent of those diagnosed survive for at least one year. These numbers are significantly higher than they were just 20 years ago, giving hope to doctors and patients alike.

A few of the other factors that affect survival rates include the specific type of mesothelioma with which an individual is diagnosed, the size and location of their tumor, and whether or not the patient is a smoker. These factors are in addition to the patient's age, any existing medical conditions they may have, and severity of the cancer itself.

Mesothelioma Documentation

It is documented that Australia had the highest per capita use of asbestos in the world from the 1950’s until the 1970’s. As a tragic consequence, Australia now has the highest per capita incidence of mesothelioma in the world. With more than 500 Australians contracting mesothelioma per year, it is estimated that up to 18,000 Australians will die from this asbestos related cancer by the year 2020.

Despite the growing awareness of the dangers of asbestos, there are many people who have not heard of Mesothelioma. This asbestos related cancer is defined as: a malignant spreading tumor of the mesothelium of the pleura, pericardium, or peritoneum, arising form the inhalation of asbestos fibers.

One of the most baffling and frightening known facts concerning Mesothelioma is that many years may pass, between inhalation of asbestos dust and its deadly legacy of disease; it is not uncommon for four decades or more to pass before symptoms due to asbestos dust inhalation become apparent.

In November 2004, I was an invited speaker at the Global Asbestos Congress 2004, held in Tokyo Japan. Over 800 participants from 40 countries around the world were in attendance. To be a part of such a large gathering of fellow humans, united in a quest to rid the poison of asbestos from our environments was an intensely moving experience. Having lost my husband to mesothelioma I know first hand the suffering this cruel disease places on its innocent victims.

There were many speakers and each told a tale, of pain, death and heartache. We listened, we understood and we ached for the past, present and future victims of the killer asbestos and its legacy of mesothelioma and other asbestos related diseases. We listened and we were shocked and angered to learn that despite the growing awareness of the dangers of asbestos and the increasing incidence of asbestos related disease, there remains some countries who are mining asbestos with little or no regard for their workers or people who will come into contact with asbestos products.

Asbestos disease Association member’s world wide are working tirelessly and fighting almost insurmountable odds to ban asbestos from all countries of the world. It is a sobering and frightening fact, that even if we were successful today in this quest, the legacy of asbestos related diseases will continue for five decades.

Add your voice to the many who want this killer product erased from the worlds environments – Add your voice to the call that pleads for adequate compensation for victims and their families. Sign the online petition at Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization:

The Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) continues to raise public awareness about the dangers of asbestos exposure and the incurable and often deadly asbestos related diseases. ADAO is quickly expanding and uniting veterans, fire-fighters, shipbuilders, teachers and thousands of other innocent people around the world. Asbestos Awareness leads to education, prevention, new treatments and ultimately a cure.
http://www.asbestosdiseaseawareness.org

Asbestos and Mesothelioma

How asbestos fibers enter the lungs

Asbestos is a term for a group of magnesium silicates that have fibrous structure. Asbestos minerals consist of fibers that are easily separable. Individual fibers are extremely small and fine, light enough to be carried in the air. Doctors who treat lung disease consider all forms of asbestos dangerous, and capable of causing cancer. The six most common are amosite, chrysotile, crocidolite, and the fibrous varieties of tremolite, actinolite, and anthophyllite. Amphibole forms of asbestos, whose fibers are straight, are more likely to cause disease than chrysotile, whose fibers are curved.

In the course of mining, manufacturing and installing products using asbestos, tiny fibers are dislodged and become airborne. Workers in an environment where asbestos is used cannot avoid inhaling the airborne fibers. Poor ventilation and insufficient or no protective apparatus increase exposure to this lethal fiber. Workers have described mining and factory environments where the air was white with asbestos dust, and their clothes and hair were covered within the fine white fibers.

How asbestos fibers damage the lungs

Most fibers are cleared from the lungs within hours of inhalation. Coughing carries them to the throat in a layer of mucus, where they are either spit out, or swallowed, and make their way out of the body.

Not all inhaled asbestos is cleared from the lungs. Some fibers progress into the alveoli, the tiny pockets within the lungs where oxygen is exchanged with the bloodstream. The fibers may remain for years, even the rest of a person's life. Amphibole asbestos fibers, which are longer and straighter than chrysotile fibers, tend to remain in the lung the longest.

Asbestos fibers move toward the lower portion of the lungs and the diaphragm, the large muscle that moves the lungs in breathing, which sits just under the lungs. In autopsies, most asbestos disease of the lungs is seen the bottom lobes of the lungs and on the surface of the diaphragm. Asbestos fibers which lodge in lung tissue and are not expelled continue to damage the tissue as long as they stay there, as the mesothelioma grows slowly and silently. Symptoms may not appear for 15 to 40 years after exposure.

Asbestos fibers and mesothelioma

Asbestos fibers work their way through the lungs into the pleural cavity, the space in the chest where the lungs sit. The asbestos fibers invade the mesothelium, the thin, moist, flexible tissue that lines the cavity. Mesothelioma specialists have two theories about how asbestos in the pleural cavity causes mesothelioma. One theory is that as the asbestos fibers migrate through the pleural cavity, they enter tissue walls and irritate tissues. The irritated cells respond by forming scar tissue. The mesothelial cells show an inflammatory immune response, scarring, and eventually the uncontrolled proliferation of cells that is the hallmark of cancer.

The second theory focuses on events at a molecular level, speculating that asbestos fibers interact with individual mesothelial cells, interfering with their cell division, or possibly damaging the cell's DNA during mitosis, or cell division. The part of the DNA that regulates the cells' growth and reproduction is damaged, so that reproduction is no longer controlled. Cells begin to reproduce wildly. This uncontrolled cell growth creates the thickened cancerous tissue and eventually begins to invade other organs.

Although the highest risk of developing mesothelioma comes from prolonged exposure to asbestos fiber, some people who develop mesothelioma have had only very brief exposure. The first symptoms of mesothelioma may not show up for 15, sometimes for as long as 30 or 40 years after the victim's exposure to asbestos. By the time symptoms are painful enough for a victim to seek medical attention, the disease may have progressed so far that life expectancy will be measured in months.

If you or a loved one has received a diagnosis of mesothelioma, and you believe that the mesothelioma developed as a result of workplace exposure to asbestos, you may have a legal claim against the corporation that permitted the exposure, or the manufacturer of the asbestos product. To learn more about your rights, you should consult a lawyer who specializes in asbestos claims.

Asbestos Cancer

Mesothelioma:
Tumor of body cavity lining: a benign or malignant tumor of the lining of the lungs, heart, or abdomen.
The malignant form is often the result of exposure to asbestos and may take more than 30 years to develop.

Asbestos (Greek a-,“not”; sbestos, “extinguishable”), the fibrous form of several minerals and hydrous silicates of magnesium. The name may also be applied to the fibrous forms of calcium and iron. Asbestos fibers can be molded or woven into various fabrics. Because it is nonflammable and a poor heat conductor, asbestos has been widely used to make fireproof products such as safety clothing for fire fighters and insulation products such as hot-water piping. The first recorded use of the word asbestos is by Pliny the Elder in the 1st century ad, although the substance itself was known as early as the 2nd century bc. The Romans made cremation cloths and wicks from it, and centuries later Marco Polo noted its usefulness as cloth.

Asbestos is of two principal classes, the amphiboles and the serpentines, the former of relatively minor importance. Chrysotile, in the serpentine class, constitutes about 95 percent of the world supply of asbestos, of which three-fourths is mined in Québec. Other large deposits exist in South Africa. In the United States, California, Vermont, and Arizona are the leading asbestos-producing states;

however, the majority of United States deposits are of no commercial value. Asbestos is obtainable by various underground mining methods, but the most common method is open-pit mining. Only about 6 percent of the mined ore contains usable fibers. The fibers are separated from the ore by crushing, air suction, and vibrating screens, and in the process are sorted into different lengths, or grades.

The most widely used method of grading, the Québec Standard Test Method, divides the fibers into seven groups, the longest in group one and the shortest, called milled asbestos, in group seven.

The length of the fibers, as well as the chemical composition of the ore, determines the kind of product that can be made from the asbestos. The longer fibers have been used in fabrics, commonly with cotton or rayon, and the shorter ones for molded goods, such as pipes and gaskets.