Health News – Every living organism’s body is made up of the same building block called cells. A human body contains trillions of cells which provide structure to the body, take in nutrients from the food we eat, convert the nutrients to energy and carry out specialized tasks and functions. Now as we grow and age, the cells in our body also age, die and are replaced by new ones as needed which is a normal process. However, there are times when this normal process gets disrupted and go wrong; new cells grow even though they are not needed and old cells which are supposed to die do not die. These extra cells in the body form a tumor which can be benign or malignant. Benign tumors are not cancer but malignant tumors are and cells from these malignant tumors can invade nearby tissues, break away and spread to other parts of our body, thus spreading the disease.
There are more than a hundred different types of cancer but for now let us focus our discussion on Mesothelioma Cancer. If you are not familiar with this type of cancer, mesothelioma cancer is the most serious of all asbestos related diseases and is one of the most aggressive types of cancer that affects the membrane lining of lungs and abdomen. The main cause of mesothelioma cancer is exposure to asbestos.
Mesothelioma Cancer is a difficult disease to diagnose since the early symptoms are subtle and very much like common illnesses: back or side chest pain, shortness of breath, difficulty in swallowing, persistent cough and fever even fatigue and weight loss. There are even reports of muscle weakness, coughing up of blood, facial and arm swelling and hoarseness. Other symptoms of this disease are anemia, blood clotting disorder, bowel obstruction, fluid effusion, hemoptysis and nausea.
To properly diagnose for mesothelioma cancer, a full medical background and information on possible asbestos exposure is taken by qualified medical professional. Medical exams and diagnostic image tests like x-rays, CT scans, PET scans, endoscopic ultrasound and MRI’s will be performed to obtain information about the cancer and how far it has progressed. Biopsies will also be recommended by doctors to determine the type of malignant cell present in the patient’s body.
There are four types of mesothelioma cancer: pleural, peritoneal, pericardial and testicular. Pleural is the most common type of mesothelioma cancer and forms in the lining of the lungs while peritoneal develops in the peritoneum which is the membrane that lines the abdomen cavity. Pericardial is found in the lining of the heart and testicular forms in the lining of the testicles.
Currently, there are four stages of malignant mesothelioma:
Stage I or Localized – cancer cells are found in one side of the lining of the chest cavity between the lungs and diaphragm but it has not spread to the lining that covers the lungs.
Stage II (Advanced) – cancer has developed in the lining of chest cavity, lining of the lungs, lining of the diaphragm, diaphragm and lung.
Stage III (Advanced) – cancer has spread in lining of chest cavity, lining of the lungs, lining of the diaphragm, diaphragm, lung and to lymph nodes that joins the lung to the bronchus, along the trachea and esophagus. Cancer may also have been found in the tissue between the ribs of the lining of the chest wall, fat in the cavity between the lungs and even in the sac that covers the heart.
Stage IV (Advanced) – when the cancer is declared to have reached this stage, it means that the cancer cannot be removed with surgery because it has reached one of both sides of the body and have spread to lymph nodes in the chest or above the collarbone.
In many cases, individuals found to be suffering from mesothelioma cancer because of exposure to asbestos receive financial compensation from asbestos manufacturers for their illness. If you are suffering from this disease due to exposure to asbestos and want to know how you can get financial assistance or compensation, you can contact a mesothelioma law firm for assistance. Make sure to know if the firm you are contacting is highly ranked for performance and ethics, is experienced in handling cases on asbestos exposure and have a successful trial record.
