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What Are The Four
Stages of Mesothelioma Cancer?
A rare form of
cancer is called Mesothelioma,
which is a
malignant tumor in the mesothelial tissues of the lungs
and the abdomen, arising from
the inhalation of asbestos. It's
rarity is one of the reasons why
a lot of people are not aware of
this kind of fatal disease. In
fact, many people die of Mesothelioma undiagnosed.
Although there is now a growing
awareness of the hazards of
asbestos to health, many
have still not heard of Mesotheloma
and therefore have not understood
its nature, cause, signs and
treatment. Even some physicians
find it hard to detect Mesothelioma because its
symptoms are akin to other
diseases like lung cancer and
pneumonia. Furthermore, it takes
decades for a patient who was
exposed to asbestos to develop
Mesothilioma - fifty years, at
most.
Being unaware of
Mesotyelioma poses higher risks
since it deters diagnosis and
treatment. A person undergoing
treatment must know the
different stages of the cancer
or the extent of the disease.
Chances of recovering from
Mesothilioma and the kind of
treatment depend on the stage of
the illness. There are basically
two staging systems used for
Pleural Mesothelioma (lungs):
TNM system and Brighan system.
These staging systems are also
used in other kinds of cancers.
However, the first is commonly
used. There is no established
method in determining the stage
of the Peritoneal Mesothelioma
cancer (abdominal) so the TNM
system is used.
There are three
variables in the TNM system:
tumor, lymph nodes and
metastasis. In the earliest
stage of Mesothilioma, stage I,
the malignant Mesothelioma cells
start to grow and multiply only
one layer of the pleura. The
pleura is the membrane that
encloses the lungs and lines the
wall of the chest cavity.
However, there are some
instances wherein the
pericardium (membrane that
covers the heart) and diaphragm
cover are already affected. In
this case, the cancer patient is
still in stage I Mesotheloma.
In the second
stage, the two layers of the
pleura are already affected by
Mesothelioma. Take note,
however, that in this stage,
only one side of the body is
affected. Normally, the pleura
produces only small amount of
lubricating fluid that allows
easy expanding and contracting
of the lungs. The excess fluid
is absorbed by the blood and the
lymph vessels so there’s a
balance between the amount of
fluid produced and removed.
During the second stage
Mesotyelioma, fluid starts to
build up between the membrane of
the lungs and the membrane of
the chest wall, resulting to
pleural effusion. The increase
in the volume of fluid produced
causes shortness of breath and
chest pain. Other Mesothilioma
cancer patients experience a dry
and persistent cough. Diagnosis
of the pleural effusion is
achieved through a chest x-ray.
Stage III
Mesothelioma means that the
malignant cells have already
spread to the chest wall,
esophagus and the lymph nodes on
one part of the chest. The
patient may suffer severe pain
near the parts affected. When
not treated immediately or when
the Mesothilioma patient doesn’t
respond well to medication, the
cancer may advance to the fourth
stage. The fourth stage
Mesothelioma is formidable since
at this stage the Mesothelioma
cells have penetrated into the
bloodstream and other organs in
the body like the liver, the
bones and the brain. The lymph
nodes on the other side of the
chest may also be affected by
Mesotheloma in stage IV.
Brighan staging
system, on the other hand,
determines whether the
Mesotyelioma can be surgically
removed or not, and whether or
not the
lymph nodes are affected.
In stage I Mesothelioma, the
lymph nodes are not yet affected
and the patient can still
recover through surgery. In
stage II, surgery can still be
executed but some lymph nodes
have already been infiltrated by
the cancer cells. In stage III,
the heart and chest wall are
already affected. Thus surgery
is no longer advisable. The
lymph nodes in this stage
however, may or may not be
affected. In the final stage,
stage IV Mesothelioma, cancer
cells have already gone to the
bloodstream and other parts of
the body like the heart, brain,
bone and liver. In most cases a
patient who has reached stage IV Mesothilioma only has four to
twenty-four months to live
Catching a Killer
- New Steps Taken in Treating
Mesothelioma
There’s a silent
killer out there. It creeps up
on its victims, attacks them
quietly and unsuspectingly, and
initiates a wound that develops
over many years before it
eventually causes pain. This
unstoppable murderer is known as
malignant mesothelioma. Mesothilioma is a
malignant tumor that develops on
the mesothelial cells of either
the lungs, heart or abdominal
organs, and plagues those who
have been exposed to asbestos
prolonged periods of time.
Many who fall victim to this
disease are people who have
worked in specific trades or
fields prior to the 1970s, such
as blacksmiths, electricians,
millwrights, and oil refinery
workers. Since it can take up to
forty years for symptoms to
surface, mesotheloma-related
deaths are higher than ever in
the 21st century. The Centers
for Disease Control and
Prevention state that 1,493
people died from asbestos in
2000, compared to 77 people in
1968.
Mesotyelioma
treatment methods differ
depending on the stage of the
cancer upon detection, as well
as the patient’s age and
personal choice of treatment.
The four distinct stages of the
disease all factors in
determining the type of mesothilioma treatment that can
be carried out. The first stage
is when the tumor has had
limited growth on the pleural
lining (the lining of the
lungs). At this stage, an
attempt can be made to
surgically remove the entire
tumor. However, if the tumor is
detected at a later stage when
it has invaded surrounding
areas, it is considered
incurable. Traditionally, the
later stages of mesotheloma
have been treated with either
chemotherapy or radiation
therapy. Chemotherapy uses drugs
to kill cancer cells while
radiation therapy uses
high-energy x-rays to kill
cancer cells and shrink tumors.
Although mesothelioma treatment
methods have been proven to
prolong patients’ lives, they
cannot cure the disease. Ongoing
clinical trials are dedicated to
overcoming this debilitating
illness. Current experimental
treatments include the
following:
Drug Therapy:
A drug called Alimta,
developed by Eli Lilly, has been
shown to significantly increase
the life expectancy of patients
and decrease symptoms of the
disease. It is the only
chemotherapy drug to be approved
by the Food and Drug
Administration for the treatment
of patients with malignant
pleural mesothelioma.
Gene Therapy:
This malignant mesothelioma treatment
is currently in the experimental
stages. The process involves
inserting a "suicide gene"
directly into the tumor. This
gene makes the cells sensitive
to a normally ineffective drug
called glanciclovir which
destroys all the cancer cells
and leaves the healthy cells
unharmed.
Photodynamic
Therapy: Still in its
experimental stage, photodynamic
therapy uses light to kill
cancerous cells. The patient
first receives a photo sensitizer
that only collects in cancerous
cells. Fiber optic cables are
then placed in the body in order
to focus the right frequency of
light on the tumor. The
photo sensitizer is then caused
to produce a toxic oxygen
molecule that kills the cancer
cell.
Immunotherapy: Also referred
to as biological therapy, this
mesothilioma treatment uses the
body's personal immune system to
defend itself against
mesothelioma. It has been
discovered that the immune
system is capable of deciphering
healthy cells from cancerous
cells, and can thus eradicate
those cells that cause cancer.
Although treatment
methods for malignant
mesothilioma are still in the
developmental or experimental
stages, there is hope that one
day all mesothelioma victims
will be freed from the murderous
hands of this fearsome disease.
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