Asbestos and Mesothelioma

Mesothelioma? What the heck is mesothelioma anyway? Answer: mesothelioma is a form of cancer. The diseased mesothelioma patient will have cancer cells lining their body cavities including the area around the patient's heart and the chest (lungs.) Mesothelioma is almost always caused by exposure to asbestos. And it doesn't take much exposure to asbestos to develop mesothelioma: exposure to even the smallest amount of asbestos on a regular basis can cause mesothelioma. Smoking greatly exacerbates the situation, dramatically increasing the risk for the individual to develop mesothelioma.

The reason you may not be familiar with the term "mesothelioma" is because it is a relatively rare form of cancer. However, it should be noted that mesothelioma cases have been on the rise in the past 20 years. Men are more likely than women to develop mesothelioma but this doesn't mean that women don't get the disease. Mesothelioma can strike any man or any women at any given age.

Many cases of pleural mesothelioma are misdiagnosed because the symptoms are very similar to other less serious diseases. Symptoms include a persistent cough, weight loss, dyspnea (dyspnea is a severe shortness of breath, much like the symptoms of asthma) and fatigue. Another form of the disease called peritoneal mesothelioma will manifest itself by causing pain in the abdominal area, a loss of overall body weight and abdominal swelling. If the cancer has metastasized (metastasis is the spreading of cancer from one part of the body to other parts) then symptoms may include difficulty swallowing and swelling of the facial and neck area.

The frightening thing about this disease is that these symptoms may not manifest themselves until 25-45 years after exposure! A Magnetic Resonance Imaging Scan (MRI), CT Scan or x-ray are often needed to make a proper diagnosis of mesothelioma. It is very important that mesothelioma is diagnosed and treated as early in the disease as possible for the cancer cells of mesothelioma are particularly resilient.