Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma

MALIGNANT PLEURAL MESOTHELIOMA

A type of lethal cancer that starts in the lining of the lungs are termed as Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma. The main cause for the Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma is the  unprotected contact with asbestos. A cancer of the lining of the lung (pleura) is referred as Pleural mesothelioma. Early detection and appropriate treatment will improve the survival rate, like in all cases of cancer. The pleural mesothelioma patients are at a disadvantage. As the symptoms take anywhere between 20 to 50 years to manifest, the patients are generally in the fifty plus age group. The diagnosis becomes difficult, as the outwardly noticed indications of the sickness are similar to that of several lesser ailments. So as the time needed to diagnosis the disease is too high, the cancer is likely to have spread by the time it is detected. There is no fully effective line of treatment yet. It is generally accepted that a combination therapy is better than monotherapy.

A great deal of research is being done in this area. A number of studies have been made about the survival rate among pleural mesothelioma patients. They all come to the same conclusion – the disease is almost always fatal. The lifespan of a person diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma is about six months to two years. There have been exceptions and their stories are inspiring. The life expectancy varies according to the stage (pleural mesothelioma has four different phases) and the type. One research based on the histologic (tissue structure)tests shows a median survival of 11 months – 9.4 months for sarcomatous, 12.5 months for epithelial and 11 months for mixed. Several inspirational books are available for the patient to read and fortify himself. Also helpful are chat rooms with others in the same condition.

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Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma