Mesothelioma

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Mesothelioma
A Wisdom Archive on Mesothelioma

Mesothelioma What is mesothelioma? Mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer (malignancy) that most frequently arises from the cells lining the sacs of the chest (the pleura) or the abdomen (the peritoneum). How do you get mesothelioma? Most people with malignant mesothelioma have worked on jobs where they breathed asbestos. Others have been exposed to asbestos in a household environment, often without knowing it. More articles below.

We recommend this article: Mesothelioma - 1, and also this: Mesothelioma - 2.

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mesothelioma, Mesothelioma, Mesothelioma - Diagnosis, Mesothelioma - Epidemiology, Mesothelioma - History, Mesothelioma - Legal issues, Mesothelioma - Pathophysiology, Mesothelioma - Research, Mesothelioma - Screening, Mesothelioma - Signs and symptoms, Mesothelioma - Sources, Mesothelioma - Staging, Mesothelioma - Treatment, Mesothelioma - Chemotherapy, Mesothelioma - Exposure, Mesothelioma - Heated Intraoperative Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy, Mesothelioma - Immunotherapy, Mesothelioma - Incidence, Mesothelioma - Radiation, Mesothelioma - Risk factors, Mesothelioma - Surgery

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Archives on Mesothelioma

FAQ Mesothelioma

What is mesothelioma?
Mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer (malignancy) that most frequently arises from the cells lining the sacs of the chest (the pleura) or the abdomen (the peritoneum).

How do you get mesothelioma?
Most people with malignant mesothelioma have worked on jobs where they breathed asbestos. Others have been exposed to asbestos in a household environment, often without knowing it.

How much exposure does it take to get mesothelioma?
An exposure of as little as one or two months can result in mesothelioma 30 or 40 years later.

How long does it take after exposure for mesothelioma to show up?
People exposed in the 1940s, 50s, 60s, and 70s are now being diagnosed with mesothelioma because of the long latency period of asbestos disease.

How is mesothelioma diagnosed?
Mesothelioma is diagnosed by pathological examination from a biopsy. Tissue is removed, placed under the microscope, and a pathologist makes a definitive diagnosis, and issues a pathology report. This is the end of a process that usually begins with symptoms that send most people to the doctor: a fluid build-up around the lungs (pleural effusions), shortness of breath, pain in the chest, or pain or swelling in the abdomen. The doctor may order an x-ray or CT scan of the chest or abdomen. If further examination is warranted, the following tests may be done:

* Thoracoscopy
For pleural mesothelioma the doctor may look inside the chest cavity with a special instrument called a thoracoscope. A cut will be made through the chest wall and the thoracoscope will be put into the chest between two ribs. This test is usually done in a hospital with a local anesthetic or painkiller.
If fluid has collected in your chest, your doctor may drain the fluid out of your body by putting a needle into your chest and use gentle suction to remove the fluid. This is called thoracentesis.

* Peritoneoscopy
For peritoneal mesothelioma the doctor may also look inside the abdomen with a special tool called a peritoneoscope. The peritoneoscope is put into an opening made in the abdomen. This test is usually done in the hospital under a local anesthetic.
If fluid has collected in your abdomen, your doctor may drain the fluid out of your body by putting a needle into your abdomen and using gentle suction to remove the fluid. This process is called paracentesis.

* Biopsy
If abnormal tissue is found, the doctor will need to cut out a small piece and have it looked at under a microscope. This is usually done during the thoracoscopy or peritoneoscopy, but can be done during surgery.

What is the prognosis for mesothelioma?
Like most cancers, the prognosis for this disease often depends on how early it is diagnosed and how aggressively it is treated.

Mesothelioma Treatment Options (Traditional & New Treatments Being Studied)

Treatment options are often determined by the stage of mesothelioma a patient is in. There are three staging systems currently in use and each one measures somewhat different variables.

The oldest staging system and the one most often used is the Butchart System which is based mainly on the extent of primary tumor mass and divides mesotheliomas into four stages.

The more recent TNM system considers variables of tumor in mass and spread, lymph node involvement, and metastasis.

The Brigham System is the latest system and stages mesothelioma according to resectability (the ability to surgically remove) and lymph node involvement.

Traditional care
There are three traditional kinds of treatment for patients with malignant mesothelioma:

* Surgery (taking out the cancer)
* Radiation Therapy (using high-dose x-rays or other high-energy rays to kill cancer cells)
* Chemotherapy (using drugs to fight the cancer)

NOTE: Often two or more of these are combined in the course of treatment.

Source: http://www.medicinenet.com

ARTICLES RELATED TO Mesothelioma

Mesothelioma: Encyclopedia II - Mesothelioma - Pathophysiology

The mesothelium consists of a single layer of flattened to cuboidal cells forming the epithelial lining of the serous cavities of the body including the peritoneal, pericardial and pleural cavities. Deposition of asbestos fibres in the parenchyma of the lung may result in the penetration of the visceral pleura from where the fibre can then be carried to the pleural surface, thus leading to the development of malignant mesothelial plaques. The processes leading to the development of peritoneal mesothelioma remain unresolved, although it has b ...

Including:

Benign - Complaints caused by benign tumors

Read more here: » Benign: Encyclopedia - Benign

Mesothelioma: Encyclopedia - Asbestosis

Asbestosis is a chronic inflammatory medical condition affecting the parenchymal tissue of the lungs. It occurs after long-term, heavy exposure to asbestos, e.g. in mining. Sufferers have severe dyspnea (shortness of breath) and are at an increased risk regarding several different types of lung cancer. As clear explanations are not always stressed in non-technical literature, care should be taken to distinguish between several forms of relevant diseases. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), these may defined as; as ...

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Mesothelioma: Encyclopedia - Carcinoma in situ

Carcinoma in situ is present when a tumor has been detected that has the characteristics of malignancy but has not invaded other tissues. Many forms of cancer are initially carcinomas in situ, but are not detected early enough. Many clinicians would not refer to carcinoma in situ as "cancer" when relating results to a patient. Conversely, although many are treated much the same way as a proven malignancy, there may b ...

Mesothelioma: Encyclopedia - Cyst

This is an article about cysts in the body. For the ICAO airport code CYST see St. Theresa Point Airport. A cyst is a closed sac having a distinct membrane and developing abnormally in a cavity or structure of the body. Cysts may occur as a result of a developmental error in the embryo during pregnancy or they may be caused by infections. However, they sometimes arise spontaneously with no apparent cause. Cysts may often be dangerous as they may have negative effects on the nearby tissue. They may c ...

Read more here: » Cyst: Encyclopedia - Cyst

Mesothelioma: Encyclopedia - Clubbing

In medicine, clubbing (or digital clubbing) is a deformity of the fingers and fingernails that is associated with a number of diseases, mostly of the heart and lungs. Idiopathic clubbing can also occur. Hippocrates was probably the first to document clubbing as a sign of disease, and the phenomenon is therefore occasionally called Hippocratic fingers. Clubbing - Signs and diagnosis. Clubbing develops in five steps:[1]Including:

Clubbing - Pathophysiology

Read more here: » Clubbing: Encyclopedia - Clubbing

Mesothelioma: Encyclopedia - Tumor

Tumor (American English) or tumour (British English) originally means "swelling", and is sometimes still used with that meaning. Tumor meaning swelling is one of the five classical characteristics of inflammation. However, the term is now primarily used to denote abnormal growth of tissue. This growth can be either malignant or benign. It is similar in meaning to a neoplasm. Tumor - Tumor Types: Malignant vs. benign. Malignant tumors are called cancer. Cancer has the potential to invade and destroy n ...

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Read more here: » Tumor: Encyclopedia - Tumor

Mesothelioma: Encyclopedia - Pleural cavity

The lungs are surrounded by two membranes, the pleura. The outer pleura is attached to the chest wall and is known as the parietal pleura; the inner one is attached to the lung and other visceral tissues and is known as the visceral pleura. In between the two is a thin space known as the pleural cavity or pleural space. It is filled with pleural fluid, a serous fluid produced by the pleura. The pleural fluid lubricates the pleural surfaces and allows the layers of pleura to slide against each ...

Mesothelioma: Encyclopedia - Bob Bellear

Bob Bellear (1944 — 2005) was the first Indigenous Australian judge. Bellear was born in the far north-east of New South Wales, and grew up near the town of Mullumbimby. His grandfather was a Vanuatuan man who was blackbirded to Australia to work on a sugar plantation, and his grandmother was an Aboriginal Australian woman from Minjerribah (also known as Stradbroke Island) in Queensland. His other grandfather had been blackbirded from the ...

Mesothelioma: Encyclopedia - Carcinogenesis

Carcinogenesis (meaning literally, the creation of cancer) is the process by which normal cells are transformed into cancer cells. Carcinogenesis - Introduction. Cell division (proliferation) is a physiological process that occurs in almost all tissues and under many circumstances. Normally homeostasis, the balance between proliferation and programmed cell death, usually in the form of apoptosis, is maintained by tightly regulating both processes to ensure the integrity of organs and tissues. Mutatio ...

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Carcinogenesis - Non-mainstream theories

Mesothelioma: Encyclopedia II - Mesothelioma - Epidemiology

Mesothelioma - Incidence. Although reported incidence rates have increased in the past 20 years, mesothelioma is still a relatively rare cancer. The incidence is approximately one per 1,000,000. For comparison, populations with high levels of smoking can have a lung cancer incidence of over 1,000 per 1,000,000. Incidence of malignant mesothelioma currently ranges from about 7 to 40 per 1,000,000 in industrialized Western nations, depending on the amount of asbestos exposure of the populations during the past seve ...

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Warren Zevon - Discography

Mesothelioma: Encyclopedia - Asbestos

Asbestos (a misapplication of Latin: asbestos "quicklime" from Greek ἄσβεστος: a-, "not"; sbestos, "extinguishable") describes any of a group of fibrous metamorphic minerals of the hydrous magnesium silicate variety. The name is derived for its historical use in lamp wicks; the resistance of asbestos to fire has long been exploited for a variety of purposes. It was used in fabrics such as Egyptian burial cloths and Charlemagne's tablecloth, which, according to legend, he threw in a fire to clean. Asbestos occurs naturally in many forms (see ...

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Asbestos - Asbestos-related diseases

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Mesothelioma: Encyclopedia - Brain tumor

A brain tumour is any intracranial mass created by an abnormal and uncontrolled growth of cells either normally found in the brain itself: neurons, glial cells (astrocytes, oligodendrocytes, ependymal cells), lymphatic tissue, blood vessels), in the cranial nerves (myelin producing Schwann cells), in the brain envelopes (meninges), skull, pituitary and pineal gland, or spread from cancers primarily located in other organs (metastatic tumors). Primary (true) brain tumours are commonly located in the posterior cranial fossa in children and in the anterior two-thirds of the cerebral hemispheres in adult ...

Including:

Mesothelioma: Encyclopedia - Cancer

Cancer is a class of diseases characterized by uncontrolled division of cells and the ability of these cells to invade other tissues, either by direct growth into adjacent tissue (invasion) or by implantation into distant sites (metastasis). This unregulated growth is caused by damage to DNA, resulting in mutations to genes that control cell division. Several mutations may be required to transform a normal cell into a malignant cell. These mutations are often caused by chemicals or physical agents called carcinogens, the best known being tobacco smoke. Some mutations occur spontaneously, or ...

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Cancer - Causes and pathophysiology

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Cancer - Treatment of cancer

Read more here: » Cancer: Encyclopedia - Cancer

Mesothelioma: Encyclopedia - Awareness ribbon

Awareness ribbons are short pieces of ribbon folded into a loop, or representations thereof. They are used in the United States as a way for the wearer to make a subtle statement of support for a cause or issue. Some ribbons (such as the red HIV/AIDS ribbon) have also received broader international recognition. Such ribbons are pinned on a person's lapel or other part of clothing, or tied around an object, or represente ...

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Mesothelioma: Encyclopedia - Poison

In the context of biology, poisons are substances that cause injury, illness, or death to organisms, usually by chemical reaction or other activity on the molecular scale. Some poisons are also toxins, usually referring to naturally produced substances, such as the bacterial proteins that cause tetanus and botulism. A distinction between the two terms is not always observed, even among scientists. Animal toxins that are delivered subcutaneously (e.g. by sting or bite) are also called venom. In normal usage, a poisonou ...

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Poison - By mechanism

Poison - By source

Poison - Famous poisonings

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Poison - Novels

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Mesothelioma: Encyclopedia - Air pollution

Air pollution is a broad term applied to all physical (particulate matter), chemical, and biological agents that modify the natural characteristics of the atmosphere. Some definitions also consider physical perturbations such as noise pollution, heat, radiation or light pollution as air pollution.[citation needed] Definitions commonly include the term harmful as a requisite ...