Mesothelioma and Asbestosis
Most mesothelioma patients suffer from breathlessness. This is due to cancer causing the cells to expand out of control, creating a tumor that places pressure on the organs nearby.
Mesothelioma is a type of cancer caused by asbestos exposure, is a rare kind of cancer. It forms in the linings of the lungs (pleura) and other body organs, including the abdomen, the heart and testicles.
Signs and symptoms
In a few instances, patients suffering from mesothelioma and asbestosis may experience similar symptoms. The two conditions are distinct. Mesothelioma, a cancerous condition, is different from asbestosis (pulmonary fibrosis), a non-cancerous disease.
People exposed to asbestos can suffer from a variety, depending on where and how they were exposed the dangerous mineral. Patients with pleural msothelioma for example, often experience chest pain or backache or breathing problems, as well as constant coughing. Some suffer from swelling of the face and arms and abdominal pain that is not explained, loss of weight or anemia.
Asbestosis is not the cause of these symptoms. However, it can reduce the quality of life due to the formation of scar tissue to build up in the lungs. The restriction in breathing can lead to a number of other health issues, such as heart failure, lung damage, and other respiratory issues.
Many people diagnosed with mesothelioma are not able to work due to the severity of their symptoms. This can cause financial issues and emotional stress. It is essential that people receive the right treatment to improve their life quality.
A doctor can identify mesothelioma with an examination that is physical, taking a detailed history of the patient's health condition and then obtaining a chest X ray or CT scan. If the patient is diagnosed with mesothelioma their doctor can provide palliative treatment that can ease symptoms and pain and prolong the life of the patient.
For instance, if the tumor is located in the pleura, doctors may eliminate excess fluid using a needle or install a tube to allow the patient to breathe easily. Another treatment that patients with pleural mesothelioma can receive is pleurodesis, which involves sealing the two layers of the pleura together to prevent recurrent fluid accumulation.
Mesothelioma treatments focus on destroying cancerous cells and reducing the rate of growth. Asbestosis treatment, on the other hand, are focused on relieving symptoms of asbestosis and improving a patient's quality of life.
Diagnosis
Mesothelioma is a rare cancer that affects the mesothelium the membrane that covers the lungs and chest cavity (pleura) as well as the membrane lining the abdomen (peritoneum) or other organs. The majority of patients with mesothelioma have been exposed to asbestos, and the disease can take decades to develop.
Because the disease has an extended latency time, it can be difficult to diagnose. The initial symptoms are usually nonspecific and resemble other health conditions. The most frequently reported symptoms are chest pain, difficulty breathing, and an unidentified loss of weight.
If a patient is beginning to experience these symptoms, doctors will request imaging scans and may refer them to a specialist. The most reliable test for mesothelioma is a biopsy, which is when a small amount of tissue is taken and examined in a lab. There are a variety of biopsies. The most popular are the bronchoscopy and needle biopsy.
A bronchoscopy can be performed by inserting a bronchoscope tube into the mouth or throat. This allows the doctor to view lung tissue and take the biopsy. The doctor makes use of an syringe for the thoracic region to remove the small amount of fluid or tissue from the affected area. This is usually the lung lining. The needle is placed into the thoracic drain, which is where the fluid originates, or into the affected pulmonary lobe to take a tissue sample for testing.
Asbestosis doesn't cause cancer, but it can cause scarring that prevents breathing. It is also a progressive disease that can cause respiratory distress over time. The symptoms of asbestosis are similar to those of mesothelioma, such as breath shortness, however they are usually more mild and are present later in the course of disease progression.
Exposure to asbestos is the reason for both mesothelioma and asbestosis. People who are at greatest risk of developing mesothelioma include miners, asbestos contractors and workers in other high-risk industries. These same groups of people are at risk of developing asbestosis, including insulation workers and veterans of the military. Asbestosis can be difficult to diagnose, as it typically presents with mild or moderate symptoms that resemble mesothelioma symptoms and are mistaken for other health conditions. It can take years for the condition to progress and is therefore difficult to detect before it has reached an advanced stage.
Treatment
Both mesothelioma and asbestosis involve a buildup of fluid around the lungs which can cause breathing problems. Surgeons remove the tumors or cancerous cells causing these symptoms. They may also employ chemo to destroy any remaining cancerous cells in order to stop the spread of cancerous cells.
Like all cancers, mesothelioma caused by an array of changes (mutations) in the DNA inside the cell. Cells receive the wrong instructions and grow uncontrollably. The excess cells create a tumor when they grow.
Mesothelioma, a cancerous tumor is treated differently than other cancers because of its location in the tissues of the abdomen and chest. Mesothelioma cannot be cured, but it can still be treated in order to ease pain and symptoms.
The treatment options for mesothelioma are chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation therapy. A vaccine, similar to the flu vaccine, which instructs the immune system to fight the virus, is currently being investigated as a mesothelioma treatment option.
Asbestosis sufferers typically suffer from breath shortness. They may have to alter their lifestyle for example, like attending pulmonary rehab and using oxygen therapy. They may need to stop smoking, or take pain-relieving medication such as bronchodilators and the narcotics.
In the case of mesothelioma doctors will consider the type of cancer, whether it's malignant or benign and the stage it's in. They will then discuss the patient's outlook that is the likelihood that the disease will improve or become worse.
Mesothelioma can be cured by certain surgical procedures, particularly when the cancer is identified in its early stages. The surgeon will use a scalpel to cut off the affected tissue. They may also remove a part of the lungs to ease the pressure and pain caused by the larger tumor.
Other treatment options include chemotherapy and radiation, which can eradicate mesothelioma cancerous cells that the surgeon did not remove. In mesothelioma patients, a surgeon might make use of 3D CRT or Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT) to deliver higher doses of radiation with less damage to surrounding tissues.
Lastly, some mesothelioma patients have been successful through photodynamic therapy. This makes use of photosensitizing drugs that interact with a specific light source to kill the cancerous cells. A new approach uses photodynamic therapy and immunotherapy to boost the body’s natural defenses against mesothelioma malignancy.
Prognosis
In some cases, those diagnosed with mesothelioma are advised that their prognosis will be grim. However, patients and their families should be encouraged to keep the hope alive and seek an additional opinion from a mesothelioma expert. It is important to know that a majority of patients can be in partial or full recovery, which can greatly increase their chances of survival.
Mesothelioma is a type of cancer that can affect any part of the body. However, peritoneal mesothelioma not caused by asbestos affects the lung tissue. The tumors are most likely to cause the pleural to thicken and pleural effusion. This is a swell of fluid. Mesothelioma is also categorized by the type of cell that forms the cancerous tumors, and the prognosis of different kinds differs.
Asbestosis is a chronic disease that shares many of the symptoms as mesothelioma. Asbestosis is caused by inhaling asbestos fibers and can cause inflammation of the lungs and chest cavities. This can eventually lead to shortness in breath. Like mesothelioma, it typically takes years for asbestosis to develop however some sufferers do not receive a diagnosis until they are already suffering with serious symptoms.
Blood tests can be used to help determine if a person has mesothelioma. However, other types of testing are required to confirm the diagnosis. A lung CT scan, or MRI is a test that can be ordered to determine the presence of tumors in the lungs and affected organs. Mesothelioma is also detected through a needle biopsy. With this procedure doctors insert an extremely thin needle into the lungs to retrieve liquid that contains samples of cells for pathological analysis.
A bronchoscopy, or thoracoscopy can be done to look inside the lungs. These are surgical procedures that require an expert inserting a small camera attached to a tube into the lungs in order to view tissue and retrieve the sample. Thoracoscopic surgery is a more extensive procedure, but it gives surgeons the best method of mesothelioma cell identification.
Melanoma and asbestosis both are incurable, but treatments are improving. Doctors can treat asbestosis using prescribed pain medications and breathing therapies, while mesothelioma requires a more extensive treatment. Patients with early stage mesothelioma may be eligible for chemotherapy or surgery, which can improve their prognosis overall.