Mesothelioma's Variation

Some Types of Mesothelioma

Peritoneal Mesothelioma

Every year, thousands of people are diagnosed with mesothelioma. Unfortunately, almost all cases of this rare and deadly form of cancer could have been prevented. Mesothelioma is caused by an environment substance – asbestos. Asbestos is found naturally in the ground, but poses little threat undisturbed in nature. However, during the industrial revolution, manufacturers began using asbestos in a number of products, especially those used for construction. Asbestos is a great product to use because it is fire-resistant, lightweight, flexible, durable, and cheap, but it also puts people at risk for very serious health problems. Today, the EPA regulates all use of asbestos, but this wasn’t always the case.

There are three kinds of mesothelioma, each attacking a different part of the body (the lungs, the heart, and the abdomen). While pleural mesothelioma (affecting the lungs) is the most common, peritoneal mesothelioma is the second most common form of mesothelioma

This type of mesothelioma affects the abdomen and is predominately caused by swallowing asbestos. Of course, no one eats asbestos, and it was never an ingredient in food products, but asbestos can be accidentally consumed in a number of ways:

• Children who are teething may stick something containing asbestos in their mouths.

• If you naturally breathe through your mouth, you could swallow asbestos.

• Eating near an area contaminated with asbestos could cause asbestos fibers to settle on your food.

• Asbestos could pollute a drinking water source you use.

Asbestos is so dangerous when it enters the body partly because of the shape of its fibers. These fibers are extremely sharp and jagged, which is why your throat might feel itchy if you’re around asbestos. When you swallow these fibers, they can get stuck in and tear the peritoneum.

The peritoneum is a soft tissue lining in the abdomen. It surrounds the liver, pancreas, stomach, colon, and small intestines for protection. This lining provides a fluid that allows them to glide against one another when moving. However, when asbestos enters the body, it creates a perfect condition for the development of abnormal cells – cancer.

When peritoneal mesothelioma develops, which can happen over the course of decades, the asbestos fibers irritate the peritoneum and cause cells to multiply quickly and overproduce the fluid normally used to keep the body healthy. Therefore, one of the main symptoms of peritoneal mesothelioma is the accumulation of fluid in the abdomen. Other symptoms include weight loss (even though your waist size may increase due to the fluid), stomach pains, bowel obstruction, and fever. Some peritoneal mesothelioma patients also develop anemia, a condition that reduces the red blood cells in the body. This strains the heart and can make you feel tired. It is also dangerous if you are injured, as bleeding becomes a problem.

Peritoneal mesothelioma makes up approximately one out of every five mesothelioma cases. While it can take years or even decades to develop, in most cases, it is discovered sooner than other forms of mesothelioma, which is in part due to the build-up of fluid.

There are two types of peritoneal mesothelioma. Dry peritoneal mesothelioma reveals a tumor in the abdomen in a single location. For this kind of cancer, many times the best option is surgery to remove the mass. Wet peritoneal mesothelioma is a bit harder to treat. In this type of mesothelioma, you’ll see a number of smaller tumors growing all over the peritoneum. Surgery is also an option, and patients can also consider chemotherapy, radiation, gene therapy, and other traditional cancer treatments. For information about treatment, please see “Mesothelioma Treatment Options.”

In addition to traditional forms of treatment, there are also alternative options as well. Not that not all of these alternative therapies are recommended by all doctors. Usually, a doctor will prescribe a traditional medical treatment, but if alternative medicine interests you, make sure you talk to a licensed professional about these options as well. For mesothelioma, some of the alternative therapies being studied include ukrain, iscador, vitamin C, ozone therapy, astragalus, and cat’s claw. Techniques like medical massage, acupuncture, and acupressure may help if you’re experiencing a lot of pain due to the mesothelioma.

Whatever course of treatment you choose, make sure that you talk to a lawyer in addition to talking to medical professionals. In the vast majority of mesothelioma cases, you are not at fault for developing this condition. Companies that produced asbestos products knew about the dangers involved with this substance since the 1940s. However, asbestos was still commonly used until the 1980s, at which time it became more regulated. Employees were put at risk without consent, as were their families, since asbestos is easily transferred home on clothing or in hair. You have legal rights against those who put you at risk. Please see “Legal Issues and Mesothelioma” for more information.

Pericardial Mesothelioma

Mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer that affects three main parts of the body – the lungs, the abdomen, and the heart. The development of mesothelioma only occurs after exposure to asbestos, a dangerous natural substance. Therefore, mesothelioma is preventable in most cases. Unfortunately, however, thousands of people have died from this deadly form of cancer and thousands more are diagnosed every year. Are you at risk? If you have been previously exposed to asbestos, you may develop mesothelioma, even if your exposure happened decades ago. By learning a bit about asbestos and mesothelioma, you can determine if you are at risk and what you should do to stay healthy.

Of all types of mesothelioma, pericardial mesothelioma is the one that doctors least understand. Pericardial mesothelioma is a cancer that affects the lining of the heart. It all starts by breathing in asbestos fibers. Asbestos was once used in a number of products because it is strong, durable, lightweight, flexible, and heat-resistant. In addition, when compared to the other options, asbestos was extremely cheap to mine, ship, and use in manufacturing. However, another of asbestos’ qualities is that it is very fibrous. Whenever asbestos rock or powder is disturbed, tiny fibers fill the air.

Although very small, asbestos fibers are extremely dangerous because they are jagged and pointy. These sharp fibers can tear tissue and become lodged in the body. This is how mesothelioma develops in the linings of the lungs and abdomen – asbestos is either breathed in or swallowed, and the fibers get stuck in the soft tissue linings of these organs. Please see “Peritoneal Mesothelioma” and “Pleural Mesothelioma” for information about these cancers.

How asbestos attacks the lining of the heart is still open for debate. The most popular theory is that some of the smaller asbestos fibers break through the lining of the lung and enter the blood stream going to the heart. When the heart pumps, the asbestos fibers get stuck in the very sensitive soft tissue lining of the heart – the pericardium. Because this is unlikely to happen, pericardial mesothelioma is extremely rare, with less than 200 new cases diagnosed every year. That also makes it hard to study and thus hard to treat. The life expectancy for a patient dealing with pericardial mesothelioma is lower than other mesothelioma patients.

Mesothelioma is a type of cancer that develops slowly over many years. In some cases, patients are not diagnosed with this cancer until 30 or more years after initial exposure to asbestos. Inhaling asbestos fibers just once is enough to cause cancer, but the risks greatly increase the longer you are exposed.

Because pericardial mesothelioma builds up slowly, some people miss the signs and symptoms that gradually worsen until they become a major problem. At this point, it is likely that the cancer is unable to be effectively treated, and it may have spread through the blood stream to other parts of the body. Some symptoms you should look for include the following: chest pains that worsen over time, irregular heartbeat, pressure on the chest, coughing, and shortness of breath.

If you are diagnosed with pericardial mesothelioma, there are a number of treatment options you should discuss with your doctor. The best path depends on the advancement of the cancer and your personal preferences. Surgery is sometimes a good option, especially if you catch the mesothelioma early. However, because the cancer is located near the heart, surgery is not always an option. Instead, you can opt to try radiation or chemotherapy. Both of these traditional cancer options work at destroying cancerous cells which, left untreated, grow very quickly. For information about treatment, please see “Mesothelioma Treatment Options.”

You can also choose not to treat the cancer, which is often a decision that patients with advanced pericardial mesothelioma consider. Instead, the medical treatments done are used to make you more comfortable. Fine needle aspiration is recommended to help the heart beat and subdue any pain – this technique uses a hollow needle to drain the fluid from your chest. Medications can also be effective, and new clinical trials are testing alternative drugs to see if they are effective against mesothelioma.

If you’ve developed pericardial mesothelioma, it's important to talk with both a medical professional and a lawyer. A mesothelioma attorney can discuss your case with you and talk about your legal rights. In most cases, mesothelioma is the fault of a past employee or of someone else who knowingly put you in harm’s way without your consent. Asbestos corporations chose profit over the health of consumers and employees and, as a result, thousands of people have died. You do have legal rights in this situation to help you get the compensation you deserve to pay for medical bills, lost wages, funeral expenses, and other fees associated with mesothelioma. Please see “Legal Issues and Mesothelioma” for more information.