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 is cancer that occurs in the mesothelium, includes epithelioid mesothelioma. In this case, it occur in the protective layer of tissue that bodily environments (epithelium). It can be found throughout the body that have job to separate and protect the organ. Epithelia spread in all part of body, such as epithelial cells are found in the skin, which separates the outside of the body from the inside of the body. Depending on the location, an epithelium can serve many functions, including protection, absorption, filtration, excretion, secretion or sensory reception.

The other cancer that can occur in the mesothelium is adenocarcinoma. Since epithelioid mesothelioma can also appear in the pleura, it can be easily confused with adenocarcinoma. But it’s a little different with epithelioid mesothelioma, since adenocarcinoma not originate in the mesothelium, but it originate from the lining or inner epithelium. However, when adenocarcinoma attack the lining of the lungs, it can spread to the mesothelium that surrounding the lungs (pleura).

The things that make epithelioid mesothelioma and adenocarcinoma hard to distinguished:

• Both of epithelioid mesothelioma and adenocarcinoma come from epithelial tissue, they have a similar cellular appearance.
• The result of chemical staining from epithelioid mesothelioma and adenocarcinoma cancer cells sometimes shows similar results.
• The clinical signs for adenocarcinoma of the lung and malignant mesothelioma are also similar.
• The symptoms that come from these two cancers, both of which typically affect the older population, include chest pain, pleural effusions (fluid build-up) and respiratory difficulty.

This is the reason why cancer of the mesothelium, or epithelioid mesothelioma, and cancer of the lung epithelium, adenocarcinoma, are often mistaken for one another and therefore misdiagnosed.

Main Article - Mesothelioma Cancer Cells