Top 19 Things You Should Know About Mesothelioma

The disease Mesothelioma is a kind of cancer that in most cases is caused by exposure to asbestos. The disease is characterized by the development of malignant cells in the protective lining of the body’s internal organs – this lining is called the mesothelium – hence the name Mesothelioma. However, it may occur in the heart, tunica vaginalis, or even in the pericardium (a sac surrounding the heart).

1. Prolonged exposure to asbestos can cause this disease, at least 30 to 40 years later.
2. The symptoms of Mesothelioma are shortness of breath (because of pleural effusion – which means accumulation of fluid between the lung and chest wall), chest wall pain, and weight loss.
3. The symptoms of peritoneal Mesothelioma are swelling in the abdominal area, weight loss, anemia, abnormalities in blood clotting, bowel obstruction, and fever.
4. Pain in the chest wall, fatigue, wheezing, and blood in the sputum coughed up are more symptoms of Mesothelioma.
5. When Mesothelioma has metastasized to the abdomen, the symptoms are pain in the abdominal area, weight loss, mass in the abdomen, Ascites (abnormal build-up of fluid in the abdomen), and obstruction in bowel movement.
6. Severe symptoms of the disease are blood clots in the veins (causing Thrombophlebitis), severe internal bleeding in the body’s organs, low blood sugar level, jaundice, blood clots in the arteries of the lungs, and pleural effusion.
7. Mesothelioma is developed by people who have inhaled asbestos particles in the workplace, or people who have suffered exposure to asbestos dust and fiber.
8. Many people make the mistake of thinking that Mesothelioma is linked to smoking, but it is not, however, smoking does increase the risk for other asbestos-induced cancer.
9. If you have been exposed to asbestos particles and have got Mesothelioma as a result, you can seek compensation from your workplace, by filing a lawsuit.
10. Another thing that you should know about Mesothelioma is that its diagnosis is done through chest X-ray and CT scan. The confirmation is done through biopsy and microscopic examination.
11. The prognosis of Mesothelioma is quite poor, even though treatment with chemotherapy, radiation therapy and surgery is done.
12. The bone, brain, and adrenal glands are almost never affected by Mesothelioma.
13. Peritoneal Mesothelioma is defined as cancer of the abdominal cavity’s lining. It accounts for nearly one-fifth of all Mesothelioma cases diagnosed.
14. Like in most cancer cases, the prognosis for Mesothelioma depends on how early it can be diagnosed, and how well it is treated.
15. The diagnosis of Mesothelioma is sometimes difficult, because of the symptoms’ similarity to other conditions.
16. If the Mesothelioma is in the abdomen, the doctor performs a laparoscopy, to get tissue from there.
17. The serum osteopontin level has proved effective in some cases, for screening the people exposed to asbestos, for Mesothelioma.
18. Diagnosis of the disease includes a review of personal medical history, physical examination, chest X-ray, lung function tests, CT scan / MRI, etc.
19. Men are more likely to have Mesothelioma than women, and their risk increases with age.

Different types of Mesothelioma

Mesothelioma is a form of rare cancer which is unfortunately not rare anymore and affects people who have been affected and exposed to asbestos in some way or the other. This form of exposure can be direct or indirect. Thus someone who is coming into daily contact with someone who is being or has been exposed to asbestos in some way or the other stands a very good chance of contracting mesothelioma as well. Mesothelioma gets its name from the areas in the body which it affects. The cancerous cells are developed in the mesothelioma and the latter is a protective lining which covers most of the vital internal organs of the body.

There is many types of mesothelioma depending on which part of the body, or rather which organ and its protective lining has been affected. Here are the major types of mesothelioma:

Pleural Mesothelioma: this is the most common among all the kinds of mesothelioma that do occur in the world. About 75 percent of all the mesothelioma patients in the world are suffering from pleural mesothelioma. Here, the cancerous cells are formed in the pleura which is the lining covering the lungs as well as the chest cavity. Mesothelioma quickly takes over the pleural lining and thus as a result. There is a massive build up of fluid within that cavity. Due to the fluid build up there is a lot of pain which comes along with the development and spread of mesothelioma. When someone inhales a lot of these asbestos fibers, these objects get stuck in the pleura and mutilate the lining and so cause irreparable damage to the organ. As a result, cancer is caused out of the mutations that are created because of the intrusions of these foreign bodies. This form is caused through inhalation of asbestos particles.

Pericardial Mesothelioma: this is the rarest form of mesothelioma that can ever be found among all mesothelioma patients. This kind of cancer affects the lining of the heart which is called the pericardium. Less than 10 percent of mesothelioma patients have this form of mesothelioma. Here again, cancerous tumors are formed around the heart and also there is a fluid build up. This fluid obstructs the natural and normal functioning of the heart. As of now, there is very little information as to how asbestos particles can enter the heart cavity and affect the lining.



Peritoneal Mesothelioma: this is a relatively commoner form of mesothelioma than the previous one. About 10 to 20 per cent of the mesothelioma patients today are of this kind. The lining of the abdominal cavity is called the peritoneum. There is another form of peritoneal mesothelioma which affects the male testicles and this diseases is a very rare one. The cause of peritoneal mesothelioma is the ingestion or the consumption of asbestos fibers which then travel through the length of the body and end up in the gut. Here the cancerous mutations are caused in the abdominal cavity which causes a lot of pain and discomfort as a result.

Peritoneal Mesothelioma Symptoms Develop

Peritoneal mesothelioma attacks the preserving membrane that covers the abdomen and organs. There are two layers of the coating, the parietal peritoneum and the visceral peritoneum. The parietal peritoneum covers the abdominal hole, extending to compensate the courageousness and lungs. The visceral peritoneum protects the berth concern of the enteral pathway and the inner meat.

The linings are prefabricated up of cells that purpose as lubricators, secreting liquid that allows the meat and linings to rub against apiece additional and act without rubbing. The symptoms of peritoneal mesothelioma appear when the inflamed cells overproduce agent and tumors bedding the peritoneum, preventing evacuation. The abdominal caries fills with agent, putting push on all the internal organs, the fat visibly swells and feels taut, and the lungs are squeezed and unable to expand sufficiency to equal a sonorous relief.

What is Peritoneal Mesothelioma?

Peritoneal mesothelioma is a organize of malign mesothelioma that affects the lining that protects the cavum. Peritoneal mesothelioma develops umpteen eld after danger to asbestos, a asphaltic that was commonly utilized in thousands of antiquity and commercial products until the 1970s and is ease in narrow use in the One States and widespread use in many remaining countries today.

Peritoneal mesothelioma is the ordinal most plebeian write of mesothelioma, the remaining types being pleural mesothelioma, pericardian mesothelioma and testicular mesothelioma. Virtually 20 percent of cancerous mesothelioma cases diagnosed apiece gathering are peritoneal mesothelioma. Malignant mesothelioma is not unwashed. An overwhelming product of patients ameliorate pleural mesothelioma, making peritoneal mesothelioma a really rarefied diagnosis.


Fill are most often unprotected to asbestos on the job. When the tiny fibers are unstable, they travel in the air and place everyplace, including accumulation, pare, matter, and deglutition. Asbestos may be ingested when fill respire the tiny fibers in, exhalation them up and endure, or when fibers are ingested with nutrient or drinks. After exposure to asbestos, nothing apparent may happen for up to 50 eld. Over term, cancerous tumors change, grow and page. The cells in the peritoneal paper become inflamed and act, approach the gaps in the application that grant changeful to pipe. Changeful builds up in the cavity, which leads to most of the symptoms associated with peritoneal mesothelioma, a thin identify of cancerous mesothelioma.

Identification of peritoneal mesothelioma is extremely tall due to its density. Most doctors, object those who use nighest doomed types of mines and in areas populated mostly by industrialized workers, mightiness never see a example during their lifetimes. The symptoms are easily incorrect for inferior sedate and writer vernacular ailments. It is oftentimes only after the symptoms essay to be noncompliant to treatment and continue that the debase looks for different answers. Since an unconventional diagnosis can evidence to wait of right communicating, it is distinguished for the unhurried to egest

Symptoms of Mesothelioma of the Abdomen

There are 3,000 cases of mesothelioma a year and of those cases, 10 to 20% of those cases are mesothelioma of the abdomen called peritoneal mesothelioma. Peritoneal Mesothelioma occurs in the abdomen that effect the mesothelial cells that form the peritoneum. The peritoneum is comprised of two layers that surround, support and protect organs in the abdomen.

Like the other forms of mesothelioma, peritoneal mesothelioma is not complete understood as to how it forms. Many scientist believe that peritoneal mesothelioma is caused by one of two ways. The first theory is that asbestos is ingested and find there way to the digestive organs. The other way is by inhaling the asbestos fibers. The asbestos finds its way to the peritoneal membrane through the lymphatic system.

Regardless of how the asbestos fibers find their way to the abdomen, they can not be expelled. Over time, the peritoneum thickens often resulting in cancerous tumors. Like pericardial mesothelioma (mesothelioma of the heart) or pleural mesothelioma (mesothelioma of the lungs), peritoneal mesothelioma are vague and can often be confused with other non-serious diseases. However, if you or someone you know has been exposed to asbestos in the past 20 to 50 years (or ever), and you experience of the following symptoms, it is advised that you seek the consultation of a doctor. Only tests can determine if mesothelioma is present.

Symptoms of Mesothelioma of the abdomen area include:

• Night sweats
  
• Fever
• Weight loss that can't be explained
• Unexplained diarrhea or constipation
• Nausea and/or vomiting
• Lumps under the skin on the abdomen
• Swelling and/or pain in the abdomen
• Anemia
• Fatigue