What is Mesothelioma?

Mesothelioma is a form of cancer that is almost always causedby exposure to asbestos. In this disease, malignant cells develop in the mesothelium, a protective lining that covers most of the organs. The most common site is the pleura (the outer layer of the lungs and internal chest wall), butmay also occur in the peritoneum (the lining of the abdominal cavity), heart,pericardium (the sac that surrounds the heart) or tunica vaginalis.

Most people who develop mesothelioma have worked on jobs where they inhaledasbestos particles, or they have been exposed to asbestos dust and fibers in other ways. It has also been suggested that washing the clothes of family members who work with asbestos can put someone at risk for developingmesothelioma. Unlike lung cancer, no association between mesothelioma and smoking, but smoking greatly increases the risk of other asbestos-causedcancer. Compensation via asbestos funds or lawsuits is an important issue in mesothelioma (see asbestos and the law).

Mesothelioma symptoms include shortness of breath due to pleural effusion (fluidbetween the lung and the chest wall) or chest wall pain, and general symptomssuch as weight loss. Diagnosis can be suspected with chest X-rays and a CTscan, and confirmed with a biopsy (tissue sample) and microscopic. Athoracoscopy (inserting a tube with a camera into the chest) can be used to take biopsies. This allows the introduction of substances such as talc to obliterate the pleural space (called pleurodesis), which prevents more fluid from accumulatingand pressing on the lung. Despite treatment with chemotherapy, radiation therapyor sometimes surgery, the disease carry a poor prognosis. Research aboutscreening tests for early detection of mesothelioma is ongoing.


signs and symptoms of disease Mesothelioma is a cancer that develops in the mesothelium of the body.mesothelium is a protective covering for the body. It covers various organs,including lungs. mesothelium consists of two thin layers. When cancer develops in the mesothelium that is between the layers. Narrow space makes it very difficult todiagnose mesothelioma in early stages.

Mesothelioma is a cancer that is difficult to treat. After diagnosismesotheliomamade, the majority of patients will not live longer than eighteen months. There are various reasons for this, including the nature of disease after being diagnosedand the lack of an effective surgical method to remove the tumor.

While most cases of mesothelioma occur around the lungs, can also occur in theabdominal mesothelium, called the peritoneum, or pericardium. Whilemesothelioma is most common in the lungs, it is important to distinguish betweenmesothelioma and lung cancer. They are two very different types of cancer and requires different types of treatment are different.

For those of you who do not know what it is mesothelioma.Silahkan read first in order to better know how dangerous this disease.

Related Post