Asbestosis

One of Asbestos Caused Disease

Asbestosis is a disease that mainly caused by asbestos, it is one of lung disease that has slowly progressing. Even though the cause is the same with mesothelioma, there is a difference. Mesothelioma comes from a long time and a lot of asbestos exposure, however, unlike any other asbestos caused disease; it is not a cancer (like lung cancer and mesothelioma).

Asbestosis is actually a chronic inflammatory condition that caused by asbestos fibers inhalation, this condition affecting the parenchymal tissue of the lungs. Asbestosis won’t occur unless someone has a very intensive and long term of asbestos exposure. This is the reason why majority of asbestosis patient are those who works at manufacturing, mining, handling or removal of asbestos.

Asbestos

Lung Cancer and Mesothelioma Risk Factor

Asbestos have become part of our life, it is exist among us, and we use it to build our house and many building. Asbestos can cause many types of lung disease, includes lung cancer. There is a synergistic effect between tobacco smoking and asbestos in the formation of lung cancer. In the UK, asbestos accounts for 2–3% of male lung cancer deaths. Asbestos can also cause cancer of the pleura, called mesothelioma (which is often mistaken with lung cancer).

In industrialized country, asbestos exposure is giving 4% to 12% of all lung cancer cases. The death number from asbestos exposure in the UK in 1929 to 1996 was reaching 18,000 for mesothelioma and 1,800 for lung cancer. . In a study of cancer mortality among about 5 100 asbestos factory workers in east London followed for over 30 years since first exposure10, the excess lung cancer to mesothelioma ratio was 1.55:1.

Biphasic Mesothelioma Cancer Cell

Biphasic Mesothelioma

Mesothelioma Cancer Cell

Biphasic mesothelioma is number second most common mesothelioma cell after epithelioid mesothelioma cancer cell, counting about 20% to 40% of all mesothelioma cases. However, this mesothelioma cell apparently increase every year, and counting up to 65%. From the name we know that biphasic mesothelioma cancer cell is a combined cell from two mesothelioma cancer cells.

Unlike epithelioid and sarcomatoid mesothelioma cells, biphasic mesothelioma does not really have a specific form. Biphasic mesothelioma cancer is a combination of epithelioid and sarcomatoid mesothelioma cancer cells. Epithelioid mesothelioma cell has cubed shape and sarcomatoid mesothelioma has spindle or oval shaped. Although both mesothelioma types are present in a biphasic tumor, they have a tendency to form in differentiated groups; they are not usually found in the same area of the tumor.

Mesothelioma Screening Test

Mesothelioma is a very rare form of cancer and very lethal that affects the membranes that protect our inner organ, which is has three main membranes, pleural (coverings of the lungs), the peritoneal membranes (coverings of the abdominal organs) or the pericardium (covering of the heart). Mesothelioma is mainly caused by a long exposure of asbestos. The other thing that makes mesothelioma dangerous is the time it took to become cancerous, it needs decades to cancerous. To prevent the mesothelioma danger, screening for those who exposed to asbestos is the only option to prevent malignant mesothelioma. Those who endanger with this cancer are people who works in the manufacturing industry, shipbuilding and construction need to be screened routinely.

These screening tests are useful to diagnose mesothelioma cancer;

Imaging Tests

Imaging tests like chest X-Ray, CT Scans, and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) can provide strong evidence to support the diagnosis especially coupled with a history of asbestos exposure and often very useful and they may show thick, nodular masses on the pleural surface. However, other diseases can produce these symptoms and to be certain of a correct diagnosis more investigations often need to be carried out.

California mesothelioma lawyer reviews strong mesothelioma lawsuit

Building a strong Mesothelioma case starts with the obvious, a high quality and knowledgeable California mesothelioma attorney. The California mesothelioma lawyer is going to need the pertinent records necessary to file a Mesothelioma lawsuit. This includes employment records, health records, and various forms that may help to verify how you were placing at risk during the time in question. A strong mesothelioma lawsuit requires vigilance and endurance. It requires a mindset based on justice, not vengeance. It is perfectly acceptable to be angry about contracting Mesothelioma, normal in fact. However, any decisions that are basing on anger and vengeance typically do not carry a person for longer periods and supply them with the necessary endurance required to see a Mesothelioma lawsuit through to the end.

Mesothelioma Past Staging System

There are mesothelioma staging system that proposed in the past that not used anymore.

Mesothelioma Staging Proposed by Butchart:

• Mesothelioma Stage 1 Tumor confined within the “capsule” of the parietal pleura, i.e., involving only ipsilateral pleura, lung, pericardium, and diaphragm.
• Mesothelioma Stage 2 Tumor invading chest wall or involving mediastinal structures, e.g., esophagus, heart, opposite pleura. Lymph node involvement within the chest
• Mesothelioma Stage 3 Tumor penetrating diaphragm to involve peritoneum. Involvement of opposite pleura. Lymph node involvement outside the chest.
• Mesothelioma Stage 4 Distant blood-borne metastases.

Mesothelioma Cancer Staging System

The stage of mesothelioma is mainly about pleural mesothelioma

International Staging System for Diffuse Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma
Tumor Size of mesothelioma
T1

• T1a
• Tumor limited to the ipsilateral parietal +/– mediastinal +/– diaphragmatic pleura
• No involvement of the visceral pleura
• T1b
• Tumor involving the ipsilateral parietal +/– mediastinal +/–diaphragmatic pleura
• Tumor also involving the visceral pleura

Knowledge about Mesothelioma Treatment

The hunting of mesothelioma answer seems found a dead end, even though it is try by many doctor and researchers. Is it mesothelioma cure really exist? Before talking about this kind of question you need to know about mesothelioma and things that can cause it. Like most people know, mesothelioma is a type of cancer that attacks the lining of inner organ. Mesothelioma doesn’t attack the organ, not until it metastasis. The only cause of mesothelioma cancer is a high exposure in a long time of asbestos.

Benign Mesothelioma

Mesothelioma is a very dangerous type of cancer that up until know, the cure is still not found yet. However, like other cancer there is a time when mesothelioma cancer still in situ (a condition where mesothelioma has not become cancerous yet) or benign mesothelioma.

There is a difference between mesothelioma and benign mesothelioma. When it still not cancerous, this cancer usually does not has any relation with asbestos exposure. Benign mesothelioma usually associated with solitary fibrous tumor of pleura, it is a former neoplasm that referred to as benign fibrous pleural mesothelioma. The visceral or parietal pleura fibrous tumors are often have not relation with asbestos exposure, with pleural effusion as an exception. Most of these fibrous tumors are benign, although a malignant form does rarely occur.

Sarcomatoid Mesothelioma Cancer Cell

Sarcomatoid mesothelioma cell is a less common of mesothelioma cell type, and counting 10%-15% of all cases each year. The cell shape typically more oval, irregular shape and the nucleus of each cell, but it is not as visible with a microscope as the epithelioid mesothelioma cancer cells. These cells grow forth out of supportive structures, such as muscles and bones.

Sarcomatoid cancer cells have similar shape with sarcomatoid mesothelioma cell, so it can also easily be confused with the type of typical sarcoma cancer cells.

Epithelioid Mesothelioma Cancer Cell

The most common mesothelioma cancer cell is epithelioid and counting 50%-75% of mesothelioma cells type. The cells usually have uniform shape, so epithelioid mesothelioma cells are easily distinguished if it viewed under high magnification from other cell nuclei. Even though it’s different from another mesothelioma cancer cells, other types of cancer can take a similar form, and if these cancers appear in the mesothelium, they can be confused with epithelioid mesothelioma. The cancer that has similar cell shape with epithelioid mesothelioma is adenocarcinoma.

Epithelioid Mesothelioma and Adenocarcinoma

Mesothelioma Cancer Cells

There are many different types of cancer that can occurs in the lung, so x-rays and other types of imaging are cannot use in to do mesothelioma diagnosis. The best way to do mesothelioma diagnosis is by biopsy, by biopsy your doctor can know what type mesothelioma cancer cells you have, and this can use to distinguish mesothelioma with other cancer, such as lung cancer.

Mesothelioma has three different types of cells that often used in deciding mesothelioma prognosis, they are:

Mesothelioma Prognosis

Mesothelioma prognosis depends on how early it is diagnosed and how aggressively it is treated. However, the prognosis for malignant mesothelioma usually disappointing, although there have been some modest improvements in prognosis from newer chemotherapies and multimodality treatments. Malignant mesothelioma Treatment at earlier stages has a better prognosis, but the cure rate is very low.

Pericardial Mesothelioma

Pericardial mesothelioma, or mesothelioma of the pericardium, is a disease that affects the lining of the heart (pericardium). It is the rarest type of mesothelioma, it only count less than 10% of all this mesothelioma cases. This disease cases are related to the lining of the heart. Just like plural mesothelioma, the fast growth of the tumor can cause expansion of the tissue and accumulation of fluid. The fluid can interfere with the functioning of the heart and cause chest pain.

Pleural Mesothelioma Symptoms

Pleural mesothelioma is the most common mesothelioma type counting up to 75% of all mesothelioma cases. Pleural mesothelioma is a dose-dependent disease, meaning that the longer and more heavily your exposure to asbestos, the greater the chance you have of developing pleural mesothelioma (or another type of mesothelioma). This can affect how quickly you are diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma, although mesothelioma is known for its long periods of even d0 years from exposure to disease progression.

Pleural Mesothelioma

The most common mesothelioma type

Pleural mesothelioma is the widely known variant of mesothelioma and the most common mesothelioma and counts 75% of all mesothelioma. In this form of mesothelioma, tumours develop on the lining of the lungs (lung pleura), and can grow fast and enlarge the pleural space, causing it to fill with fluid. Over time, they cause chronic inflammation that eventually leads to growth of cancerous tumors or, in some cases, asbestosis. Sometimes doctors refer to this disease as mesothelioma of the pleura.

Peritoneal mesothelioma Symptoms

Mesothelioma symptoms and signs may not appear until next 20 to 50 years (or more) after exposure to asbestos. However, once the cancerous tumors start to grow in the peritoneum, fluid begins to rapidly accumulate in the abdominal area. This fluid causes swelling and discomfort and leads to the symptom of peritoneal mesothelioma:

• Upper abdominal pain.
  It is the most common peritoneal mesothelioma symptom.
• Cough and shortness of breath.
  Less common symptoms
• Bowel obstruction.
  
  

Peritoneal mesothelioma

Peritoneal mesothelioma is number 2 most common form of mesothelioma cancer that affects the lining of the abdomen. This mesothelioma type affects the lining that protects the contents of the abdomen (peritoneum) and which also provides a lubricating fluid to enable the organs to move and work properly. Sometimes doctors refer to this disease as mesothelioma of the peritoneum. Peritoneal mesothelioma can spread to the lungs and when this occurs, it is considered secondary lung cancer.

The peritoneum is made of two parts, the visceral and parietal peritoneum. The visceral peritoneum covers the internal organs and makes up most of the outer layer of the intestinal tract. Covering the abdominal cavity is the parietal peritoneum.

Mesothelioma Treatment

Mesothelioma treatment that often uses:

• Traditional mesothelioma treatments
  Which is use the same treatments to treat most other cancer, includes:
• Surgery
• Chemotherapy
• Radiation therapy (radiotherapy) 
• New methods of mesothelioma treatments
  As its name, it use new treatment methods that have been research and developed, includes:
• Development of new chemotherapy agents
• Intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT)
• Photodynamic therapy (PDT)
• Immunotherapy
• Gene therapy
• Other Treatment:
• Multimodality Therapy
• Heated Intraoperative Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy

Mesothelioma Types

Mesothelioma cancer is a type of cancer that attack the serous membranes that surround the major organs in the midsection of the body. It can metastasis and attack different organs because the serous membranes surround the lungs, heart, abdomen and others. Pleural mesothelioma is the most common type of mesothelioma is that which affects the lung lining. Other types are pericardial mesothelioma, which affects the lining of the heart, and peritoneal mesothelioma, affecting the lining of the abdomen.

Mesothelioma Screening

Mesothelioma screening test may able to detect and diagnose mesothelioma earlier than conventional methods. With this screening the survival rate hope will improve for patients. However, this method has no universally agreed for screening people who have been exposed to asbestos. The screening methods use osteopontin serum, the serum osteopontin level might be useful in screening asbestos-exposed people for mesothelioma.

Mesothelioma Symptoms and Signs

It is a serious disease that attacks the mesothelium part. There are many reason that makes mesothelioma dangerous, one of them is mesothelioma symptoms or signs will not appear until 20 to 50 years (or more) after exposure to asbestos. The symptoms are also similar with other diseases that less serious.

The mesothelioma common symptoms are:

• Shortness of breath, 
• Cough, 
• and pain in the chest 

These symptoms often occur due to an accumulation of fluid in the pleural space (pleural effusion). Because early mesothelioma symptoms tend to be general, they often go ignored or else confused for symptoms of less serious ailments. Generally, however, individuals begin to manifest mesothelioma symptoms two to three months prior to being diagnosed .

Malignant Mesothelioma

Malignant mesothelioma is rare type of cancer that occurs in mesothelium part (lining that cover and protect internal organ). The main cause of mesothelioma is exposure asbestos. Although malignant mesothelioma is rare, it is a serious, deadly disease. It is often in the advanced stages when it is detected, so the outlook for the mesothelioma patients is not as good as it is for patients with cancers that are detected earlier. The average survival time after detection is 1 to 2 years. This survival time also depends on the type of mesothelioma. Despite how dangerous mesothelioma is, up to 3,000 new cases diagnosed each year.