Healthy News

Over the past couple of years there has been an upsurge in interest about mesothelioma amongst the general population. The shocking truth about mesothelioma is that although Mesothelioma Cancer is a rare cancer, every year about 2,000 new cases of mesothelioma are diagnosed in the United States and this number has been continuously increasing for the past 20 years.

 Initially mesothelioma was recognized as a tumor of the pleura, peritoneum and pericardium. Later on, the doctors discovered the fact link between mesothelioma cancers and asbestos exposure. J.C.Wagner was the first person to write on this link when he emphasized the linkage of mesothelioma to asbestos exposure in about 32 cases of workers in the “Asbestos Hills” in South Africa.

After this initial publication, the relationship between mesothelioma and asbestos exposure was confirmed in different research studies around the world. Mesothelioma is caused because of asbestos exposure and inhalation of asbestos particles. Asbestos was widely used in industrial and manufacturing processes and building materials. Construction materials such as cement, tiles, roofing shingles, pipes, insulating material and many more, contained asbestos materials. The shocking mesothelioma fact is that almost all American buildings constructed before 1970s contain asbestos material that could pose risk for the occupants.

Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation has released a fact that, though since 1970s the protections against asbestos exposure have been in place, the mesothelioma would take 30 to 50 years to be noticed. This is because mesothelioma cancer and other asbestos diseases have a high latency rate. The asbestos particles can lie dormant in the human body for 30-50 years before manifesting as mesothelioma cancers.

Mesothelioma cancers are of two main types. In pleural mesothelioma, the cancer cells are found in the sac lining the chest and the peritoneal mesothelioma is found in the lining of the abdominal cavity. There are rare instances of mesothelioma of the lining of hearts and testicles. Mesothelioma is more prevalent in men than in women.

Awareness about mesothelioma facts is also helpful in having awareness about symptoms of mesothelioma. This information helps in early detection and timely treatment of disease. Chest pain that is caused by cancer itself or shortness of breath, abdominal pain and swelling, cough, fatigue and unexplained weight loss are some possible symptoms of mesothelioma cancers.

It’s high time that all of us should know about Mesothelioma, its causes, its symptoms, its treatment and the possibility of its cure. To begin with let’s take a look on how did Mesothelioma come into being.

The cause and its origin

One of the ancient civilizations of the world had given the relevance of asbestos use for the first time. But history shows that even during the age of Greek civilization the use of asbestos was not made popular because the Greeks had found some health ailments due to its use.

Thousands of years had crossed till we came to the latter half of the nineteenth century. Once again the use of asbestos was in vogue. After Industrial Revolution the major heavy industries related to construction job considered asbestos to be an excellent mineral quite cheap and readily available for great insulators and fire resistors. In some cases asbestos even substituted wood. And in 1890s a case of Mesothelioma cancer was first time diagnosed.

After thorough checkup when nothing was found behind the cause of this disease, inhalation of asbestos fibers came to the forefront. It was then researched and confirmed that how asbestos can react with the mesothelium cells present in the body especially as the covering of the major organs the heart and the lungs. Thus this became the cause behind the deadly cancer Mesothelioma.

The warning signs

If you are a patient of Mesothelioma you might show many symptoms but nothing so specific that can instantly point out the disease. This is the biggest problem in the proper diagnosis of the disease. Generally the signs of illness comprise of pain around the chest region, loss of weight, reducing appetite, fatigue, increasing troubles with normal process of breathing and facing problems in doing some heavy works as if running short of breath.

Treatment though not cure

The possible treatments till date for Mesothelioma are surgery, chemotherapy and the most conventional among them is the radiation therapy. Precisely these treatment processes can help the patient to remain under better conditions till the last day of their life. These treatments are like support system for sustenance but in no way they can make the patient completely fit and restore to health. The patient also knows that he will die very soon but with any of these treatments he can at least lead to some extent a painless life combating with the disease in every possible way.

There are many misconceptions about malignant mesothelioma disease. Many classified malignant mesothelioma disease as a lung cancer.  The fact is mesothelioma is a not a lung cancer. Mesothelioma disease usually originates in the pleural lining of the lung. Mesothelioma may cause similar respiratory symptoms as lung carcer. But it is not actually lung cancers.

It is not true that only those who worked with asbestos can develop malignant mesothelioma disease. The fact is majority of malignant mesothelioma patients are those who have asbestos exposure in their line of work. There have been reported cases of workers  who handled asbestos regularly, where their spouses and childen do suffered from mesothelioma as well. It is because these workers contaminated asbestos dust or fibers on their work clothes, hair or work gear and they brought them home.

People believe it is safe to be exposed to small amount of asbestos fibers. Please be informed that no matter how small the amount of asbestos exposure, it is still hazardous to your health. In fact just a few asbestos fibers lodged in the pleural lining of the lung is enough to cause you to have malignant mesothelioma disease and other asbestos related disease.

It is not true that only smokers can be affected by mesothelioma. Smoking does not cause mesotheliom. The simple fact of the matter is that anyone who is exposed to asbestos for a period of time could be the next mesothelioma victims. While smoking definitely exacerbates the possibility of contracting malignant mesothelioma disease.

You are helpless and there is no form of assistance available for families of mesothelioma victims. No, that’s not true. There are many different forms of assistance available for families of mesothelioma patients, which includes financial compensation from the employer of ones workplace. Most malignant mesothelioma disease victims are affected because of negligent occupational conditions. This is where you need to hire mesothelioma attorney to file for financial settlements. Then there are social and medical consultations available in many cancer centers.