Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Mesothelioma Symptom Information

By Thomas Goldman

A mesothelioma symptom can appear up to 50 years after the exposure to asbestos which makes it a difficult disease to diagnose. Screening is sometimes done, and can sometimes be effective to some degree although there are no standard accepted screening methods yet.

Mesothelioma symptoms might include such things as shortness of breath, coughing, pain in the chest, weight loss, bowel obstruction, low blood sugar level, blood clotting problems, anemia, fever, general pain, difficulty swallowing, swelling and pain of the abdomen, blood in the fluid coughed up, jaundice, swelling of the neck and/or face. Different stages of the disease might display different symptoms. Also different varieties of the disease for example pleural mesothelioma and peritoneal mesothelioma, can show different symptoms.

Diagnosis of this disease is not easy at all because all the symptoms can also be caused by other medical conditions which are a lot less serious. Asbestos exposure (and exposure to other chemicals which occasionally cause the disease) can suggest that the disease is more likely. A physical examination is usually the first step, then if the disease is suspected, a chest X-ray and lung-function tests can give a clearer idea how likely it is. Diagnosis might be confirmed by examination of some of the effected tissue or any fluid which has built up in the chest cavity.

Mesothelioma is a type of cancer which is relatively rare and is typically found in 1 person per million. This is much less common than for example lung cancer where the incidence in those who smoke is one in a thousand. Smoking on its own does not cause the disease, but smoking can make the disease more likely if there is also exposure to asbestos.

When diagnosed, mesothelioma can be treated by surgery, radiation therapy and chemotherapy, often in a combination. Large legal settlements are often obtained by people with the disease. It is important to remember that what might appear to be a mesothelioma symptom is much more likely to be an indication of a less dangerous problem.

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