Early diagnosis prevails as the most recognized factor contributing to increased survival in mesothelioma patients. While the same can be said of many diseases, and specifically many cancers, it’s particularly true in the case mesothelioma owing to a variety of variables.
Mesothelioma, a cancer which affects primarily the area around the lungs, abdomen or heart, is caused by exposure to asbestos fibers. The disease takes varying amounts of time to develop from patient to patient, and has been known to occur in cases with widely differing levels of exposure to the dangerous mineral. One of the defining characteristics of the disease is its long latency period, or the unusual amount of time that it takes for malignant tumors to develop after exposure to asbestos fibers occurs. In some patients, it can take as long as fifty years for the disease to present from the time of initial exposure.
An early diagnosis occurs most often in patients who are younger, healthier, and more fit to recover from the harsh mesothelioma treatments prescribed by doctors who intend to attack the disease. The vast majority of mesothelioma patients are beyond retirement age and already experiencing failing health; as such their suggested treatments are often confined to palliative measures aimed at decreasing pain and discomfort rather than attacking the cancer itself. In the rare cases when the disease is diagnosed early, doctors may prescribe radical treatment regimens such as curative surgery combined with intra-pleural chemotherapy and radiotherapy – a harsh treatment which is difficult to recover from, but one intended to eradicate malignant tissues.
Limited spreading of the cancer is also a benefit of early diagnosis, in addition to relative youth and ability to recover. Mesothelioma which can be contained and treated in one, localized site is more likely to be effectively destroyed without causing irreparable collateral damage to the surrounding tissues.
Unfortunately, effecting an early diagnosis continues to be difficult. Last year the Oxford Centre for Respiratory Medicine contributed a study on improved diagnosis methods to the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. The study involved 167 volunteers and investigated the efficacy of measuring mesothelin in pleural fluids as a new method for mesothelioma diagnosis.
The study, like others of its kind, was promising but not practically applicable. The best method of early diagnosis still lies in patients discussing any history they have in the asbestos industry with their doctors, and completing a biopsy as soon as possible.
This entry was posted on Thursday, September 30th, 2010 at 8:09 AM and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.
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