18.12.07

Information On What is Mesothelioma

Information On What is Mesothelioma by Uchenna Ani-Okoye

Mesothelioma is an uncommon form of cancer, usually associated with previous exposure to asbestos. Signs and symptoms of the disease include among other things, shortness of breath and rapid unexpected weight loss as in patients with Mesothelioma, nutrients in the blood stream cannot always be absorbed resulting in malnutrition and weight loss.

Aside from Mesothelioma, these people can acquire asbestosis, a non-cancerous chronic lung sickness and other forms of cancer of the lungs, cancer of the larynx and kidney. There are treatments used to keep the patient comfortable, but there is currently no cure for mesothelioma. Erionite fibres were found in biopsies of lungs of the mesothelioma cancer afflicted people.

The physicians empanelled by mesothelioma treatment support groups analyze each patient. A legal counseling along with aid from housing, utilities, transportation, accurate medical treatment, pharmaceutical supplies and services should be the prime motto of mesothelioma support. The compensation could be millions of dollars for victims of mesothelioma who have been exposed to asbestos.

Because mesothelioma is caused by direct exposure to asbestos or asbestos dust, and nearly 30 million tons of asbestos was used in buildings of every description until the mid 1970's, it has kept Mesothelioma lawyers in high demand, as they pursue Mesothelioma settlements for the victims and their families. Approximately 2,000 to 3,000 new cases of mesothelioma are diagnosed each year in the United States alone.

'What is Mesothelioma', the website contains useful resources on Mesothelioma lawyers and attorneys, as well as causes by asbestos exposure, asbestos removal, asbestos attorneys and lawsuits, and asbestos cancer. Mesothelioma thus becomes a deadly disease when no remedial measures are taken to overcome it and when exposure to asbestos is not controlled. However it would take 10-40 years after the first exposure for the first symptoms of mesothelioma to become noticeable, which made it very difficult to diagnose.

It is important to stress that once you start experiencing the symptoms of pericardial mesothelioma (shortness of breath, chest pains, coughing up blood, and palpitations) you should immediately seek specialized help. Mesothelioma can result from very small fibres or dust particles at low exposure levels. Generally, it is believed that sustained exposure to asbestos is more liable to give one mesothelioma.

Due to the difficulty of diagnosing mesothelioma in its early stages, many mesothelioma treatments focus on improving the quality of life for patients. There are many variables in evaluating a mesothelioma case, so only the patients doctor can determine the best treatment and possible prognosis on an individual basis. Pericardial mesothelioma sufferers may experience chest pain, shortness of breath, persistent coughing and palpitations.
Chemotherapy of mesothelioma is being improved regularly as research labs and pharmaceutical companies are discovering new and more effective drugs. Pleural mesothelioma: A type of lung cancer which attacks the pleura surrounding the lungs, this is the most common type of mesothelioma, affecting approximately two-thirds of all mesothelioma patients.
If you'd like access to more information and resource links pertaining mesothelioma, then check out my site at: Mesothelioma Cancer.

About the Author
Uchenna Ani-Okoye is an affiliate marketer who writes articles on various topics

16.12.07

How Deadly is Mesothelioma Cancer?

How Deadly is Mesothelioma Cancer? by Ramir Sarmiento

Mesothelioma asbestos cancer is one of the deadliest forms of cancer today, with a mortality rate so high that eight out of ten of those diagnosed pass away within a year of their diagnosis.
Today, asbestos is banned in at least 60 countries, so the asbestos cancer is most often found in those who worked with asbestos mainly from the 1950s to the 1970s.

Asbestos is the name for the group of six different fibrous minerals, which occur naturally in the environment.

Asbestos does not dissolve in water nor evaporate, and they have no detectable odor and taste.
It has a tendency to separate in to microscopic size particles that will remain in the air, and easily inhaled.

Most people develop asbestos Mesothelioma cancer have they worked on the job where they inhaled asbestos particle, or have been exposed to asbestos dust fibre.

Once asbestos is inhaled, it comes through the respiratory passage. These fibre lodge themselves in the mesothelial cell around the lungs.

It can cause direct damage to the lungs traveling to the end of their small passage reaching pleural are surrounding the lungs.

There are many different names of Mesothelioma cancer such as pleural, peritoneal, and pericardial because of the different location of the cancer on the body's internal organ.
Being positive from asbestos Mesothelioma cancer need much attention.
In common cases, the patient or victim is diagnosed and it was too late to do anything, to save one's life.

A worker must take necessary precautions when dealing with asbestos fibers to minimize some health problems.

Tips to Prevent Mesothelioma cancer:- Always wear a protected suit before doing your job. Asbestos particles need not to be able to enter inside your suit.- Bring extra clothes after work. Change your clothes before going home to avoid the possibilities of inhaling it together with your loved ones.- Always wear a high-quality dust mask inside the facility.
Mesothelioma asbestos cancer is particularly difficult to diagnose, as the symptoms do not tend to become evident until the final stages of the disease.

A very important characteristic of asbestos disease and asbestos cancer is the long delay, or latency period, between asbestos exposure and the beginning of the asbestos disease or asbestos cancer.

About the Author
Ramir Sarmiento has been providing useful tips, guidelines, and other important information with regards to Mesothelioma cancer, Mesothelioma lawyers, Asbestos lawsuit issues, and many more.

11.11.07

Medical view of mesothelioma

Medical view of mesothelioma by Archana Sarat

Medical View of Mesothelioma
More than 8 million people have been exposed to asbestos and are at risk of succumbing to mesothelioma. Mesothelioma is caused when the mesothelium cells start to divide rapidly leading to cancer. The only known cause of mesothelioma is exposure to asbestos fibers. The disease has a very long latency period, sometimes even around 60 years. The disease has no known cure and death becomes inevitable.

It is also very hard to correctly diagnose the disease in the early stages, as the symptoms of the disease are similar to other non-malignant diseases like pneumonia. The asbestos fiber, which is light and invisible, is released during mining and manufacture of asbestos. It is inhaled easily through nose and mouth and affects the mesothelium lining of the body part that it comes into contact with. This sets off the mesothelium cells rapid division operation, resulting in tumors. The mesothelium lining can be found in the organs like lungs, abdomen and heart.
Depending on this, mesothelioma can be classified into three categories: § Pleural mesothelioma, which affects the lungs, § Peritoneal mesothelioma, which affects the abdomen, and § Pericardial mesothelioma, which affects the heart.

Due to the long latency period of the disease, people who have worked in asbestos-related factories in their youth may contract the disease in their old age during or after retirement. Many of them may have shifted many jobs by this time and they do not relate their condition to asbestos exposure. Thus, they do not consider mesothelioma as an occupational disease. They face huge sorrow at having to part with their loved ones in such a tragic way.

Life of Jack Daws
Jack Daws was working as a tutor in the rural regions of Pennsylvania. He had a beautiful wife and a handsome son. He had what is called as a perfect family! They were always supportive and co-operative. They had enduring love and constant hope on each other.
Jack Daws loved his job as he loved kids of all ages and all sizes. He was the coach of the local soccer team during weekends. When Jack was around 55 years, he was planning on getting a retirement from the school where he tutored in another year or two.

At this crucial point of time, Jack slowly started realizing something was wrong with his health. He felt a constant pain in his chest and severe shortness of breath. He, his family and his doctor dismissed all these symptoms as a cause of aging, initially. But, slowly, his condition started to worsen. He felt as if a heavy weight has been placed on his chest. Also, he started losing weight rapidly. By now, the doctor also started sensing that something was wrong with Jack. The doctor conducted a whole lot of tests on Jack. One of the tests that were conducted was to study the fluids & cells in his lungs. After this test, the doctor felt that it appeared cancerous. Further tests followed to make the right diagnosis. It was, finally, confirmed. Jack suffered from 'Pleural Mesothelioma', I.e. mesothelioma affecting the lungs. Doctors felt that Jack had only another year or two of life on earth. Jack started analyzing how he contracted mesothelioma. He had never worked in any asbestos-related industries. Slowly, it dawned on Jack. Lots of construction and painting work used to be done on in his school.

Due to his long career at the school, he was constantly exposed to asbestos dust, which was used during the painting work. The company, which did the job for the school, did not take any safeguards to protect, anyone. Jack was advised to initiate proceedings against the company. The company did not disclose the dangers of asbestos and behaved in a selfish profit-oriented manner.

When Jack initiated proceeding against the company, it was found that lots of people have already sued the company for the same reason and have won their cases. Thus, the Company did not want to go into lengthy and expensive legal proceedings. They agreed to go in for an out-of-court settlement. After negotiations, the company paid Jack around a million dollars for the health damages he suffered and around two million dollars for his family-dependents. Jack underwent treatment at a cancer center. The cancer was spread all around his body and surgery was ruled out for him. Jack underwent chemotherapy and lived a life of suffering for the next two years. After that he succumbed to the disease. However, his soul will rest in peace as he has provided a safe and comfortable settlement for his loving family members.

About the Author
Archana Sarat is a freelance writer and medical researcher. Know more about mesothelioma at http://www.rarehope.com

7.11.07

Malignant Mesothelioma

Malignant Mesothelioma by Subramani

Malignant mesotheliomas in the thorax arise from either the visceral or the parietal pleura. Although uncommon they have assumed great importance in the past few years because of their increased incidence among persons with heavy exposure to asbestos. In coastal areas with shipping industries in the UNITED States and Great Britain and in Canadian and South African mining areas, up to 90% of reported mesotheliomas are asbestos-related. There is a long period of 25 to 45 years for the development of asbestos related mesothelioma and there seems to be no increased risk of mesothelioma in asbestos workers who smoke. This is in contrast to the risk of asbestos related bronchogenic carcinoma already high and is markedly magnified by smoking. Thus for asbestos workers those who are also smokers), the risk of dying of lung carcinoma far exceeds that of developing mesothelioma.

Asbestos bodies are found in increased numbers in the lungs of patients with mesothelioma and mesotheliomas can be induced readily in experimental animals by intrapleural injections of asbestos.

Malignant mesothelioma is a diffuse lesion that spreads widely in the pleural space and is usually associated with extensive pleural effusion and direct invasion of thoracic structures. The affected lung is ensheathed by a thick layer of soft gelatinous, grayish pink tumor tissue.

Microscopically malignant mesotheliomas consists of a mixture of two types of cells either one of which might predominate in an individual case. Mesothelial cells have the potential to develop as either mesenchymal stromal cells or epithelium like lining cells. The latter is the usual form of the mesothelium, an epithelium that lines the serious cavities of the body. The mesenchymal types of mesothelioma appears as a spindle cell sarcoma resembling fibrosarcoma (sarcomatoid type), whereas the papillary type consists of cuboidal, columnar or flattened cells forming a tubular and papillary structure ( epithelial type) resembling adenocarcinoma. Epithelial mesothelioma may at times be difficult to differentiate grossly and histologically from pulmonary adenocarcinoma.

Special features that favor mesothelioma include the following (1) positive staining for acid mucopolysaccharide, which is inhibited by previous digestion by hyaluronidase; (2) lack of staining for carcinoembryonic antigen (CFA) and othere epithelial glycoprotein antigens, markers generally expressed by adenocarcinoma (3) strong staining for keratin proteins with accentuation of perinuclear rather than peripheral staining (4) on electron microscopy the presence of long microvilli and abundant tonofilaments but absent microvillous rootlets and lamellar bodies. The mixed type of mesothelioma contains both epithelial and sarcomatoid patterns. Cytogenetic abnormalities occur in mesotheliomas but not reactive mesothelial proliferations a diagnostically useful feature.

Clinical course
The presenting complaints are chest pain, dyspnea and as noted recurrent pleural effusions. Concurrent pulmonary asbestosis (fibrosis) is present in only 20% of patients with pleural mesothelioma. Fifty percent of those with pleural disease die within 12 months of diagnosis and few survive longer than 2 years. Aggressive therapy (extrapleural pneumonectomy, chemotherapy , radiation therapy) appears to improve this poor prognosis in some patients. The lung is invaded directly, and there is often metastatic spread to the hilar lymph nodes and, eventually , to the liver and other distant organs.

Mesotheliomas also arise in the peritoneum, pericardium, tunica vaginalis, and genital tract. Peritoneal mesotheliomas are particularly related to heavy asbestos exposure, 50% of such patients also have pulmonary fibrosis. Although in about 50% of cases the disease remains confined to the abnorminal cavity, intestinal involvement frequently leads to death from intestinal obstruction or inanition.

About the Author
For more information about Malignant Mesothelioma visit http://www.medicalhealthcenter.net