by Johanes Stones
Mesothelioma is a type of cancer caused mainly by asbestos. It's a very serious type of cancer, and families who have been touched by mesothelioma have many challenges ahead. Treatment of Mesothelioma is very expensive. It is caused by excess growth of cell and here asbestos is responsible for it. That's why it is also called asbestos cancer.
Most Mesothelioma patients have worked on jobs where they inhaled asbestos particles, or they have been exposed to asbestos dust and fiber in other ways. The symptoms of Mesothelioma include shortness of breath, chest pain, and general symptoms such as weight loss, constipation and cough.
The incidence of Mesothelioma is one in 10 lakh people. The rate slightly goes up in western countries. The incidence of this disease is 7 to 40 in 10 lakh person. The reason for increased incidence in western countries in nothing but the industrialization. Diagnosing Mesothelioma is often difficult, because the symptoms are similar to those of a number of other conditions. Diagnosis begins with a review of the patient's medical history. A history of exposure to asbestos may increase clinical suspicion for Mesothelioma
After the diagnosis of Mesothelioma the stage of cancer is determined. This process is called staging. Their are 4 stages depending on the extent of your disease. The tests that may help to determine your cancer are chest X-ray, CT scan of chest and abdomen, MRI (Magnetic resonance imaging) and PET (Positron emission tomography). After determining the stage of your cancer your treatment is done according to it.
Mesothelioma that progresses can lead to death. People who die of Mesothelioma usually die from related complications, such as lung failure, heart problems, stroke and other causes therefore its early detection is must.
How is Mesothelioma Diagnosed? - An Analysis
by Johanes Stones
Diagnosing mesothelioma is not an easy job. In fact many doctors are still unfamiliar with the symptoms that can to be attributed to this cancer. Moreover the symptoms of the disease do not generally manifest for several years after contraction. This makes this disease even more difficult to be diagnosed at a proper time and often it becomes too late for any doctor to do anything really constructive. So the first thing that you should do is to inform your doctor in advance if you are regularly exposed to asbestos. Otherwise after seeing the symptoms he may put those down to some other disease before testing for mesothelioma.
The diagnosis of mesothelioma begins with a CT or MRI scan to detect its presence and if the results show any positive sign then a biopsy is conducted. The initial scans help the doctor to view the affected area so that he can prepare a suitable plan to counter it. The doctor may do a minor operation to get a tissue sample of your lungs or other body part and run a biopsy on that. This is known as open pleural biopsy. While there are many other techniques to find the evidences of mesotheliom, experts consider pleural biopsy to be the most convincing way of diagnosing mesothelioma.
There are more than a few ways in which the doctor can perform a tissue biopsy in order to test for mesothelioma. A thoracoscopy or laparoscopy involves making a small cut and then keeping an eye over the infected area with the help of a tiny camera. Your doctor may do a needle biopsy in which a hollow needle is inserted into the chest cavity in order to collect a tissue sample which is then examined by the pathologist.
However, with open biopsy the doctor can collect a bigger tissue sample which makes diagnosis easier and even more precise which is why most physicians adhere to this technique. Once the tissue samples have been collected, a detailed examination of the cells is performed to check for malignant cells in the tissue. When all of this has been done, some more tests are performed to determine the extent of mesothelioma so that treatment can be done accordingly.
Diagnosing mesothelioma is not an easy job. In fact many doctors are still unfamiliar with the symptoms that can to be attributed to this cancer. Moreover the symptoms of the disease do not generally manifest for several years after contraction. This makes this disease even more difficult to be diagnosed at a proper time and often it becomes too late for any doctor to do anything really constructive. So the first thing that you should do is to inform your doctor in advance if you are regularly exposed to asbestos. Otherwise after seeing the symptoms he may put those down to some other disease before testing for mesothelioma.
The diagnosis of mesothelioma begins with a CT or MRI scan to detect its presence and if the results show any positive sign then a biopsy is conducted. The initial scans help the doctor to view the affected area so that he can prepare a suitable plan to counter it. The doctor may do a minor operation to get a tissue sample of your lungs or other body part and run a biopsy on that. This is known as open pleural biopsy. While there are many other techniques to find the evidences of mesotheliom, experts consider pleural biopsy to be the most convincing way of diagnosing mesothelioma.
There are more than a few ways in which the doctor can perform a tissue biopsy in order to test for mesothelioma. A thoracoscopy or laparoscopy involves making a small cut and then keeping an eye over the infected area with the help of a tiny camera. Your doctor may do a needle biopsy in which a hollow needle is inserted into the chest cavity in order to collect a tissue sample which is then examined by the pathologist.
However, with open biopsy the doctor can collect a bigger tissue sample which makes diagnosis easier and even more precise which is why most physicians adhere to this technique. Once the tissue samples have been collected, a detailed examination of the cells is performed to check for malignant cells in the tissue. When all of this has been done, some more tests are performed to determine the extent of mesothelioma so that treatment can be done accordingly.
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