what is mesothelioma CANER

What Is Mesothelioma CANER
Though medical science has made tremendous strides in the treatment of many different types of cancer, mesothelioma remains cancer that is always considered to be fatal. The disease is unique in many ways, and the things that make it different are also the things that make is to difficult to treat and cure.
Tremendous resources have been invested in finding an effective treatment for mesothelioma, but a cure for the disease remains elusive. Patients still face a life expectancy of approximately one year from the time of their diagnosis, and often are forced to decide whether they want to undergo aggressive treatment or simply accept comfort and pain relief.

No Early Detection

Many forms of cancer are detected early through a series of diagnostic and physical tests. Breast cancer is identified in its early stages through mammography and self-exams, and the same is true of prostate cancer. Colon cancer is often identified by a scheduled colonoscopy, allowing for treatment and full recovery in many cases.


But there is no blood test for mesothelioma, and those who are at risk for the disease are often unaware of its existence. Mesothelioma is extremely rare – it is only diagnosed in approximately 3,500 patients in the United States per year, and those diagnoses only come when the disease is advanced beyond effective mesothelioma treatment.

The Cause of Mesothelioma

Mesothelioma is caused by exposure to asbestos, a mineral that has been widely used in several applications for centuries. There is evidence that the early Romans used asbestos, and its use was ubiquitous in the United States from the time of the Industrial Revolution forward, particularly during and after the World Wars.
Asbestos is inexpensive, easily accessible and very strong. It is a very effective flame and heat retardant, so it was used to build and insulate ships, homes, appliances, power plants – it was even used to make floor tiles and ceiling tiles and to line the inside of hair dryers. It is still found in many buildings and materials around today.
Mesothelioma Symptoms


Asbestos use was largely banned back in the 1980s, but many asbestos workers still do not know that they were ever endangered. Mesothelioma takes decades to show its symptoms, and when they do arise, people, either don’t know or don’t make the connection between their symptoms and an exposure that took place fifty years earlier.
Complicating the matter further is the fact that mesothelioma’s symptoms are so similar to those of common, harmless ailments that many people don’t even go to the doctor for them. They wait for symptoms to go away or take over the counter remedies, and only go to the doctor when they start to feel worse.
Doctors are also frequently unfamiliar with mesothelioma symptoms, and this can delay diagnosis further. All too often they will prescribe medications or treatments thinking that the patient has the flu or bronchitis. These innocent mistakes can mean the loss of valuable treatment time and a further progression of the disease.

Mesothelioma Prognosis

Once mesothelioma is diagnosed patients are often shocked to hear that the symptoms that they had thought were benign are actually those of a fatal disease that is likely to claim their life within a year. Because mesothelioma has such a long latency period and takes so long to diagnose, it is often advanced beyond effective treatment options.
Several things determine a mesothelioma patient’s survival outlooks, as well as the treatment regimen that they opt for. These include how far the disease has advanced, what kind of mesothelioma they have been diagnosed with and what their own age and physical condition are.

Mesothelioma Treatment

Mesothelioma is a difficult disease to treat, and it cannot be cured. The available treatments exist to either prolong life beyond the expected course of the disease, which is approximately one year or to make the patient who has been diagnosed more comfortable by reducing the size of the tumour and minimizing pain.


In many cases, whether patients decide to undergo curative treatments or palliative treatments, surgery will be part of the course of treatment. Debulking surgery will remove as much of the tumour as possible to allow patients to be more comfortable and may be followed or preceded by chemotherapy or radiation therapy to kill cancer cells.

Living with Mesothelioma

Patients who have been diagnosed with mesothelioma have short life expectancies as a result of having been exposed to asbestos. The problem of asbestos exposure by employers has been recognized as a case of negligence, and as a result mesothelioma cases have become the largest mass tort in legal history.
Those who have mesothelioma are often able to sue their employer or others who were responsible for their exposure. A mesothelioma lawyer can help you determine your eligibility so that you can receive compensation for your expenses and to help take care of your family.

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