Mesothelioma causes, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, and life expectancy
Mesothelioma! Have you ever heard about mesothelioma? Perhaps Yes. Don’t worry. If you haven’t come across and don’t know what the disease is, then I will discuss here in details about this disease. What I am going to discuss here is mesothelioma, malignant mesothelioma, mesothelioma definition, mesothelioma |
| Source- skinnbodycare.com |
What is mesothelioma?
Mesothelioma is a very rare, dangerous and aggressive cancer found in the lining surrounding the heart, lungs, and stomach. It is a furious disease which can’t be completely cured. It is a kind of tumor. You must know the mesothelioma causes. There is no written statement that it will happen to a particular age group. From zero to five years old age group, there is no chance or a very little chance. But, the age group starting from six up to sixty plus, there is a chance of happening this disease. The disease is divided into four stages. We will discuss all the stages and many things regarding this disease in an other article. Here is the complete mesothelioma pictures and inforgraphics.
Mesothelioma definition
To be frank, there is no such special definition of mesothelioma. Yet, every medical website writes the definition of what they understand about mesothelioma and mesothelioma causes. If I were to tell you the so-called definition in a simple language, then I would tell you this. There is a thin tissue called mesothelium which lines lung, abdomen and chest wall. The malignant mesothelioma is the cancer of that mesothelium tissue.
Difference between mesothelioma and malignant mesothelioma
Mesothelioma is cancer. A cancer tumor of the thin tissue i.e. mesothelium is called malignant mesothelioma. Ler's discuss mesothelioma causes.
Mesothelioma Causes
More than often people think that, as it is cancer and affects lungs, mesothelioma causes by smoking. They are wrong when they interpret the causes like this. Then, what are the possible mesothelioma causes? Let’s discuss the causes behind the mesothelioma disease.
When a person inhales the airborne asbestos, particles can get into the person’s lungs. The asbestos fibers can lodge into the lining of lungs which causes scarring and inflammation. This inflammation cause damage to the DNA cells. Eventually, it causes mesothelioma cancer. Due to the movement of the fibers to different parts of the body, it causes different types of mesothelioma.
However, the main reason, according to medical science after investing for decades, is Asbestos exposure. What happens when you swallowing or inhaling the microscopic asbestos dust is it starts a chain reaction within your body without knowing you. This also causes a breathing disorder which is called asbestosis and which is incurable in nature.
These are the risk factors for mesothelioma.
- Dwelling near an asbestos mine
- Working at an asbestos processing plant
- Working in high risk of occupation in a heavy industry
- Serving facilities built with products containing asbestos
- Without
taking proper safety, if you are disturbing the asbestos product during home renovation
or at other times, then there is a high chance of getting it.
However, I have already mentioned that smoking is not a cause of mesothelioma. If you are regularly exposed to asbestos and also smoking then there is a high chance that your cancer condition will worsen.
Mesothelioma symptoms
Mesothelioma starts as a tumor and then it turns to cancer. Until the first two-stage, one can not find what are the regular symptoms. Because until the tumor has grown and spread you can’t even know it. When someone reaches at level 3 or 4, he finds that the tumor press against the chest wall or the abdominal cavity.
By accident through blood tests or x-rays, mesothelioma diagnosis happens. Well, when a man can not say what are the symptoms when the cancer was in stage 1 or 2, he can say it when the cancer is in stage 3 and 4, these symptom, what one usually finds, are-
- Pain in the chest or the abdomen
- Muscle weakness
- Shortness of breath
- Dry cough
- Night Sweats
- Fever
- Fatigue
- Respiratory complications
- Pleural effusion
- Wheezing
Mesothelioma diagnosis and treatment
Mesothelioma disease is very rare. So, most of the doctors often confused about whether it is lung cancer or any other disease. Also, there is no developed clear-cut diagnosis plan by experts. Because it varies. If a man comes to know that he has mesothelioma disease at an early stage, then his diagnosis is different than the person who later came to know about his mesothelioma disease.
Well, these are the diagnostic procedures to test for mesothelioma.
- Blood maker tests- This is done to know whether cancer is present and If cancer is present and it is of what type.
- Different imaging tests such are CT Scan, MRIs, X-rays and PET scans.
- Biopsies- Doctors actually do it to know cancerous growth in sample tissues
Remember the oncologist makes the final diagnosis by conducting various tests. The cure and Treatment for mesothelioma include chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation therapy.
Mesothelioma Life Expectancy
The life expectancy of the mesothelioma patient depends on various factors. The most important 3 factors are-
- Stage of the disease- whether it is stage 1 or stage 2 or stage 3 or stage 4, it depends.
- Location-This means where the tumor originates- the lining of heart, lungs or abdomen determines which treatment options you should be treated in.
- Cell type- Epithelioid, Sarcomatoid, and Biphasic.
These 3 types of cell respond differently to treatment.
According to the American Cancer Society, life expectancy is given below.
- People with Stage 1 or 2- They have an average life expectancy up to 19-21 months.
- People with Stage 3 or 4- They have an average life expectancy up to 16 months.
- Patients who have peritoneal mesothelioma and who have received surgical treatment, they have a life expectancy for more than 5 years.
- Mesothelioma life expectancy without treatment - If the mesothelioma remains untreated then there are about six to eight months for the peritoneal type.
Mesothelioma treatment through chemotherapy or by radiation therapy cost a lot. General people can’t afford it.
Last words
Mesothelioma is very rare. Often, men are more affected by this disease. You can’t do anything other than consulting a doctor. When you feel uncomfortable in inhaling and exhaling, contact a doctor. Be open. Tell them. Also, it is advised to stay away from those, which I have mentioned in the mesothelioma causes section. Contacting a person who has been gone through or going through this disease might help you in knowing more like what needs to be done and etc. If you are lucky, then you may find out that you have the disease in an earlier stage. And, if you see any people diagnosed with this disease kindly support them.
