Mesothelioma is a diagnosis that nobody wants to hear from their doctor. Why? The disease is a malignant form of cancer that is caused by exposure to asbestos.
Mesothelioma gets its name from the part of the body that it first attacks. The Mesothelium is a membrane in the internal area of the body. It lines the lungs, heart and abdominal cavity and acts as a protective barrier. Mesothelioma is the growth of tumors in this lining. The tumors are cancerous and malignant. Because of their location, they also are able to spread readily to critical parts of the body.
The most common type of Mesothelioma is known as pleural. This version of the cancer is found in the mesothelium lining of the lungs. The reason it is the most common form has to do with the simple fact that most people breathe in asbestos particles when they are around them. These particles manifest in the Mesothelium lining in the lungs and tumors can then grow.
There are two other types of Mesothelioma that can occur as well. Peritoneal Mesothelioma grows in the lining of the abdominal cavity. As the name suggests, Pericardial grows in the lining of the heart. Neither is a good place to have a tumor, but tumors on the heart are particularly bad news.
All cancers are maddening and scary, but Mesothelioma is one of the most frustrating. Why? It can take decades to manifest as a tumor with symptoms. Most people exposed to asbestos don't know they've been exposed. They can then go 25 or 30 years feeling just fine. Slowly, but surely, they start feeling tightness under the ribs, a lack of appetite and so on. The next thing they know, they've been diagnosed with a malignant tumor. All from a period of exposure they probably don't even recall!
Is there a cure for Mesothelioma? No. Surgery can sometimes be a solution if things are caught early enough, but the cancer is usually fatal. This is perhaps the number one reason Mesothelioma is so feared.
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