By P. Mehta
Mesothelioma is a type of cancer involving
mesothelial tissues of body organs usually lungs or abdominal. It is often
caused by exposure to asbestos. However, there are 30-50% of patients without
any history of asbestos exposure. People who have received asbestos exposure of
as little as one or two months to very low doses are at risk of mesothelioma
cancer. Even people who wash clothes of asbestos exposed people are at risk. A
person exposed to asbestos could develop mesothelioma after 50 years of
exposure.
People in the occupations such as
construction jobs in shipyards, insulators, boilermakers, etc. are at the risk
of contracting asbestos disease.
The 2 common types of mesothelioma are:
Pleural mesothelioma (lung cancer) and
Peritoneal mesothelioma (abdomen organs). The survival time for a patient with
diffuse malignant mesothelioma is from 4 to 24 months from the observance of
the symptoms. Mesothelioma is also difficult to diagnose.
The chance of recovery for a patient with
mesothelioma depends on size and location of the cancer, age of the patient and
his response to the treatment. Presently, the treatment options for
mesotheliomas are:
Radiation therapy, Chemotherapy, Surgery
and Photodynamic therapy. There is some evidence that provitamin A or
beta-carotene may decrease the risk of mesothelioma.
Copyright 2004, P. Mehta
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About The Author
P. Mehta
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