Mesothelioma is a relatively rare cancer with about 2,000 new cases reported in the United States each year, according to the National Cancer Institute. Life expectancy of patients diagnosed with mesothelioma varies from months to several years depending on the type of mesothelioma and how advanced the cancer is found.
Mesothelioma is usually associated with exposure to workplace asbestos particles inhaled or ingested. Form of the disease included: pleural mesothelioma, peritoneal mesothelioma, and pericardial mesothelioma. Name identifies which occurs in the body.
* Pleura mesothelioma, the most common form affects about two-thirds of patients, occurred in the lung lining and chest cavity walls. Shortness of breath and chest pain due to accumulation of fluid around the lungs are often symptoms of pleural mesothelioma.
* Peritoneal mesothelioma is a cancer involving the stomach lining tissue. This represents 20 to 30 percent of cases. Symptoms include weight loss, abdominal pain and fluid buildup in the stomach.
* Pericardial mesothelioma, which occurs in the lining around the heart, is extremely rare, representing less than 1 percent of cases.
A very deadly disease, mesothelioma is often difficult to diagnose because it may not appear until 30 to 50 years after exposure to asbestos and symptoms such as shortness of breath or abdominal pain, similar to some other disease is more common.
For these reasons, doctors often do not definitively diagnose mesothelioma until the disease has reached an advanced stage, making a short life expectancy. A tissue biopsy is needed to confirm the diagnosis.
Median Survival Rate
Median survival rate for malignant mesothelioma is 6 months to 18 months, according to American Thoracic Society.
* A study of asbestos workers in the United States and Canada found that among 141 cases of pleural mesothelioma, 35 percent of patients die within six months, 64 percent in one year and 94 percent within 24 months of initial symptoms. Survival averaged 10 months.
* Of the 244 people with peritoneal mesothelioma, 54 percent die within six months, 88 percent within 12 months and 98 percent in 24 months. Average life is significantly shorter: four months.
British Thoracic Society said that the median survival rate varies depending on the 8-14 months of study and the type of mesothelioma. However, the disease is progressive and five-year survival rate is very poor.
There is not much evidence that surgical removal of diseased tissue alone improve patients' survival, the American Thoracic Society said. To be effective, doctors must remove the membranes lining the lungs (stage I) and the lungs themselves in cases of more advanced and often the stomach lining and lining around the heart and part of the chest wall. Even after such radical surgery, only about 11 percent of mesothelioma patients survive more than five years.
Patients may have a more favorable prognosis if the disease is diagnosed within six months from the onset of symptoms, still in stage I, in which cancer cells are still contained in the stomach lining, and there is no obvious chest pain, the American Thoracic Society said.
Mesothelioma because it is difficult to control, the National Cancer Institute is sponsoring the research experiment designed to find new treatments and better ways to use current treatments. In selected patients with less advanced cases of mesothelioma, doctors have achieved some level of improved survival by aggressive treatment, combining surgery to remove diseased tissue followed by chemotherapy and radiation.
A study by British researchers identified a protein in the pleural fluid may be a reliable indicator of mesothelioma also offers hope for achieving progress in early detection of disease. That could allow doctors the opportunity to treat patients while their disease is still in its early stages.
* Peritoneal mesothelioma is a cancer involving the stomach lining tissue. This represents 20 to 30 percent of cases. Symptoms include weight loss, abdominal pain and fluid buildup in the stomach.
* Pericardial mesothelioma, which occurs in the lining around the heart, is extremely rare, representing less than 1 percent of cases.
A very deadly disease, mesothelioma is often difficult to diagnose because it may not appear until 30 to 50 years after exposure to asbestos and symptoms such as shortness of breath or abdominal pain, similar to some other disease is more common.
For these reasons, doctors often do not definitively diagnose mesothelioma until the disease has reached an advanced stage, making a short life expectancy. A tissue biopsy is needed to confirm the diagnosis.
Median Survival Rate
Median survival rate for malignant mesothelioma is 6 months to 18 months, according to American Thoracic Society.
* A study of asbestos workers in the United States and Canada found that among 141 cases of pleural mesothelioma, 35 percent of patients die within six months, 64 percent in one year and 94 percent within 24 months of initial symptoms. Survival averaged 10 months.
* Of the 244 people with peritoneal mesothelioma, 54 percent die within six months, 88 percent within 12 months and 98 percent in 24 months. Average life is significantly shorter: four months.
British Thoracic Society said that the median survival rate varies depending on the 8-14 months of study and the type of mesothelioma. However, the disease is progressive and five-year survival rate is very poor.
There is not much evidence that surgical removal of diseased tissue alone improve patients' survival, the American Thoracic Society said. To be effective, doctors must remove the membranes lining the lungs (stage I) and the lungs themselves in cases of more advanced and often the stomach lining and lining around the heart and part of the chest wall. Even after such radical surgery, only about 11 percent of mesothelioma patients survive more than five years.
Patients may have a more favorable prognosis if the disease is diagnosed within six months from the onset of symptoms, still in stage I, in which cancer cells are still contained in the stomach lining, and there is no obvious chest pain, the American Thoracic Society said.
Mesothelioma because it is difficult to control, the National Cancer Institute is sponsoring the research experiment designed to find new treatments and better ways to use current treatments. In selected patients with less advanced cases of mesothelioma, doctors have achieved some level of improved survival by aggressive treatment, combining surgery to remove diseased tissue followed by chemotherapy and radiation.
A study by British researchers identified a protein in the pleural fluid may be a reliable indicator of mesothelioma also offers hope for achieving progress in early detection of disease. That could allow doctors the opportunity to treat patients while their disease is still in its early stages.
No wonder they drag the cases out after diagnosis. We never get the money fro treatment in time even after living and working around asbestos our whole life. I thought the sheets and tape on our furnace and pipes were safe while playing in our deadly basement. They dont seem to care much in my state even though they bring up the topics and cases for someones benifit.