Mesothelioma - The 3 Main Types
In general, mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer. Different
types of mesothelioma are distinguished between by where the
cancer is growing. Pleural mesothelioma, the most common,
accounting for 75% of all mesothelioma cases, is where cancerous
cells develop on the lining of the lungs. The next most common
form of mesothelioma is peritoneal mesothelioma and this is
where cancerous cells grow on the peritoneum which is the lining
of the abdomen. Pericardial mesothelioma, the least common major
form of mesothelioma, makes up roughly 5% of all mesothelioma
cases. This is where malignant cancer cells grow on the lining
of the heart.
All three of these forms of mesothelioma are caused by asbestos.
Asbestos is a naturally occurring fibrous mineral that was
discovered around the 1860s. Due to its highly useful property
of being fireproof, asbestos was used greatly in construction in
the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s. It was not until the early 1960s
when the severe health hazards that asbestos causes were
discovered, that asbestos stopped being used. When exposed to
asbestos with insufficient protection a person will breathe in
tiny asbestos fibres which are suspended in the air. These
fibres pass into the respiratory system until they become lodged
in the lining of the lungs. Over time, an accumulation of these
asbestos fibres in the lungs can cause pleural mesothelioma.
Asbestos fibres may also pass into the lymphatic system and be
transported to either the lining of the abdomen or the tissue
surrounding the heart. This may cause either peritoneal
mesothelioma or pericardial mesothelioma.
In terms of symptoms, the three main types of mesothelioma have
some symptoms in common with each other. These symptoms are
usual of all three types: chest pain, shortness of breath,
coughing, coughing up blood, vomiting, nausea, weight loss and
loss of appetite. An additional symptom of pericardial
mesothelioma is palpitations.
There are a few treatments for all types of mesothelioma but
none of these have a high success rate. The effectiveness of the
treatment depends on how early and how aggressively the cancer
is treated. If the cancerous cells are treated when they have
fully matured and developed then it is unlikely that treatment
methods will be successful. Treatment methods include
chemotherapy which is the use of drugs to kill the cancer,
radiation therapy which uses a radiation dosage to kill off
cancerous cells and surgery which attempts to gain long term
control over the cancer by removing a large portion of malignant
cells. These treatment methods can be combined in the form of
dual therapy.