The only known cause of this type of cancer is asbestos exposure.
Asbestos is a fiber that was once widely used in hundreds of building, industrial, commercial, and housing products and is still present in millions of U.S. workplaces and homes.
The risk of exposure to asbestos remains a very real danger and symptoms of malignant mesothelioma do not appear for at least 15 years after asbestos exposure.
For those who worked with or around asbestos products, airborne fibers can be inhaled or ingested, lodging themselves in the tissue lining the lung (known as the pleura), chest cavity, or abdominal cavity.
These fibers can stay in the body for decades before mesothelioma develops.
Symptoms of malignant pleural mesothelioma, the most common form of the asbestos cancer, often start out like other respiratory diseases such as the flu, pneumonia, or COPD.
However, anyone with a history of asbestos exposure should seek medical attention immediately if he or she exhibits these symptoms:
- Shortness of breath
- Chest pain
- Pleural effusion (fluid on the lungs)
- Weight loss
- Persistent cough
- Loss of appetite
Types of Mesothelioma
Pleural Mesothelioma
The most common type of the cancer is malignant pleural mesothelioma, which affects the pleura — the mesothelial membrane lining the lungs and chest wall.
This type begins in the pleura typically results from asbestos fibers being inhaled. Tumors that develop in the pleura may spread to the nearby diaphragm, heart, and blood vessels of the chest. Early symptoms can include shortness of breath, pleural effusion (pleural fluid build-up), chest pain, cough, and a lack of energy.
Although the cancer can spread (“metastasize”) from the pleura into the lung, the origin site is the actual pleural tissue surrounding the lung – not the lung itself. (There are many differences between mesotheliomas and lung cancer.)
Peritoneal Mesothelioma
When it develops in the peritoneum, the mesothelial membrane that covers the abdominal cavity and the organs within it, the cancer is called peritoneal mesothelioma (or abdominal).
Peritoneal mesothelioma is the second-most common form of this cancer, accounting for about 10 percent to 15 percent of new diagnoses.
This peritoneal cancer may result from swallowing asbestos fibers or inhaling fibers that then work their way into the abdomen.
Patients with malignant peritoneal mesothelioma often experience abdominal swelling due to fluid build-up accompanied by abdominal pain, weight loss, and loss of appetite.
Pericardial Mesothelioma
The pericardium is the mesothelial membrane covering the heart.
Pericardial mesothelioma is a highly lethal and very rare form of the cancer, accounting for roughly 1 percent to 5 percent of all new cases.
Fluid in the pericardial space, shortness of breath, fever, chest pain, weight loss, and heart palpitations are symptoms of this pericardial cancer.
Testicular Mesothelioma
The rarest of all types, mesothelioma of the tunica vaginalis testis (testicular mesothelioma) is a tumor of the membrane covering the testicle.
Because of its rarity, there is little clinical agreement about this type of testicular cancer characteristics and symptoms, making diagnosis extremely difficult.
Patients sometimes report painful swelling of the testicle, and a doctor diagnoses the cancer intra-operatively (during surgery) or post-operatively, following laboratory analysis.
Ultrasound and other imaging scans and tests may also be used for testicular mesothelioma diagnosis.
Questions About Mesothelioma:
What Is A Mesothelium?
The mesothelium is the membrane that surrounds many of the body’s vital organs. This membrane secretes a lubricating fluid that provides easy movement of the organs within the body.
This is where the cancer develops when asbestos is inhaled or ingested. When the mesothelium becomes cancerous, it is called mesothelioma.
There can be multiple forms of the cancer when it affects the mesothelium.
The form is determined by the location in which the tumor begins, known as its origin site, and the type of cells that the tumor invades, known as its histological subtype. Each type may require a different treatment.
Can Smoking Cause Mesothelioma?
Asbestos is the only known cause of mesothelioma. If you are a smoker who has been diagnosed, your doctor will urge you to quit immediately.
Why is malignant pleural mesothelioma the most common type of mesothelioma?
Most people are exposed to asbestos when fibers from asbestos-containing materials become airborne. This could happen when cutting, sanding, drilling, filing, or otherwise disturbing these dangerous materials. In the past, some workers also were exposed to raw asbestos, which was mixed with other materials to form products such as asbestos cement.
Airborne asbestos fibers could easily drift across an entire worksite, putting everyone in the vicinity at risk, not just those who were working directly with the material. This widespread exposure risk makes pleural the most common type of the disease.
Can mesothelioma be inherited?
No, malignant mesothelioma cannot be inherited, and it is not contagious.
However, family members could have been exposed to asbestos secondhand (known as take-home asbestos) when those who worked with the material accidentally brought fibers home on clothing or uniforms.
Secondhand exposure to asbestos can cause mesothelioma. There may be some genetic factors in the development of this asbestos cancer.
Lung Cancer Vs. Mesothelioma
People may confuse malignant mesothelioma with lung cancer. However, these are two separate types of cancer. Lung cancer is a carcinoma that affects the lung itself.
Is mesothelioma the same as lung cancer?
Mesothelioma is a cancer that attacks the mesothelium tissue that lines the lungs, chest cavity, and other organs in the body. Exposure to asbestos can cause both types of cancer, but it is the only known cause of malignant mesothelioma.
Asbestosis Vs. Mesothelioma
What is asbestosis disease?
Asbestosis disease is a chronic lung condition that is caused by inhaling asbestos fibers.
The asbestos fibers lodge in tiny sacs in the lungs, known as alveoli. Symptoms of asbestosis include shortness of breath, tightness and pain in the chest, chronic cough, loss of appetite, weight loss, and clubbing of fingers and toes.
Treatment can include use of an oxygen tube or mask, pulmonary rehabilitation exercises, or a lung transplant in extreme cases.
Are asbestosis and mesothelioma the same?
No. Although both of these diseases, along with lung cancer, are associated with exposure to asbestos, they are not the same.
Asbestosis is a chronic lung disease, not a cancer. It is caused by inhalation of asbestos fibers, which can get stuck in the small sacs in the lungs. Having asbestosis can increase a patient’s chances for developing asbestos-related lung cancer.
Malignant mesothelioma is a cancer. It affects the mesothelium tissue, which lines the lungs and chest wall, as well as the abdominal cavity, heart, and testicles. Malignant mesothelioma is caused by the inhalation or ingestion of asbestos fibers, which lodge in the mesothelium tissue.
When you begin to experience symptoms, your doctor will first do a physical exam and talk to you about your work history.
He or she will likely perform:
- Chest X-ray
- CT scan
- MRI
- Biopsy
- Thoracentesis
- PET Scan
A biopsy is ultimately needed to confirm a mesothelioma diagnosis.
Stages of Mesothelioma
The progression of pleural mesothelioma is measured in four stages.
Traditionally, these stages measured only the tumor mass under the Butchart System.
However, a second system, the TNM system, looks at the growth of lymph nodes, which filter out harmful substances from the body, and metastasis, or the extent that the cancer has spread.
All staging systems relate to pleural (chest) mesothelioma, the most common form of the disease, and use four stages.
There are no established staging systems for peritoneal or pericardial mesothelioma.
Stage 1
The TNM staging system breaks down Stage I into two categories that describe where the cancer is located.
- Stage IA is when the cancer is found on one side of the chest in the chest wall lining. It also covers when it is found in the chest cavity lining between the lungs and/or the lining that covers the diaphragm. The cancer has not affected the lung at Stage IA.
- Stage IB is when cancer is in the chest lining on one side of the chest and on the lining that covers the lung. It includes cancer in the linings of the chest cavity and/or diaphragm.
Stage 2
The cancer has spread (metastasized). However, the cancer remains in the chest or has reached above it to the esophagus.
Stage 3
The two systems have different definitions for Stages III and IV.
The Butchart System defines Stage III as further spreading through the diaphragm to reach the lining of the abdomen or lymph nodes outside the chest. Stage IV occurs when the cancer can be found in the bloodstream and has further spread to other organs.
The TNM System defines Stage III as further spread within the same side of the chest. Stage IV is when the cancer has spread outside one side of the chest to the other side and to other organs as well.
Stage 4
Stage IV occurs when the cancer can be found in the bloodstream and has further spread to other organs.
Treatment for malignant mesothelioma will depend on the patient’s health and the stage at which the cancer was caught.
The most common treatment options include:
- Surgery to remove as much of the cancer as possible
- Chemotherapy
- Radiation therapy
Many treatments focus on maximizing life expectancy and decreasing the pain and symptoms associated with malignant pleural mesothelioma and other forms of the cancer.
There are some rays of hope for mesothelioma sufferers.
With the success of recent research and clinical trials, new treatments have been developed that specifically target malignant mesothelioma.
Targeted therapies take advantage of the unique genetic characteristics of the patient, and personalized treatments allow doctors to select an approach that is most effective for each patient.
Find Mesothelioma Doctors & Treatment Centers Near You
Free Mesothelioma Patient
& Treatment Guide
We’d like to offer you our in-depth guide, “A Patient’s Guide to Mesothelioma,” absolutely free of charge.
It contains a wealth of information and resources to help you better understand the condition, choose (and afford) appropriate treatment, and exercise your legal right to compensation.
This site complies with the HONcode standard for trustworthy health information:
verify here.