Mesothelioma is a very rare type of cancer that develops in the mesothelium layer of Internal organs like lung,testes, heart, stomach and other organs.
Types of mesothelioma
•Pleural mesothelioma
•Peritoneal mesothelioma
•Pericardial mesothelioma
•Testicular mesothelioma
Pleural mesothelioma
Thats forms in the lining of the lungs
Symptoms
Chest pain
Blood in sputum
Dry cough
Fluid around the lungs
Difficulty swallowing
Shortness of breath
Respiratory complications
Peritoneal mesothelioma
That develops in the lining around the Abdomen
Symptoms
Nausea
Diarrhea
Abdominal pain
Constipation
Loss of appetite
Ascites
Pericardial mesothelioma
That grows on the tissue around the heart
Symptoms
Chest pain
Constructive pericarditis
Shortness of breath
Pulmonary embolism
Cardiac tampode
Heart failure
Testicular mesothelioma
That forms on the membrane that covers the testes
Symptoms
Swelling of the testes
Pain
Enlargement of the scrotum
Build up of fluids
Other General Symptoms of mesothelioma
Fatigue
Fever
Weight loss
Loss of appetite
Blood clots
Excessive sweating
Investigation for Mesothelioma
Chest x-ray
Computed tomography (CT) scan
Echocardiogram
Pulmonary function tests
Positron emission tomography (PET) scan
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan
Blood tests
: FIbulin-3,Soluble mesothelin-related peptides (SMRPs)
biopsy
Mesothelioma survival rates
(According to the American Cancer Society)
Survival rates can give you an idea of what percentage of people with the same type
and stage of cancer are still alive a certain amount of time (usually 5 years) after they were diagnosed. They can’t tell you how long you will live,but they may help give you a better understanding of how likely it is that your treatment will be successful.Keep in mind that survival rates are estimates and are often based on previous outcomes of large numbers of people who had a specific cancer, but they can’t predict what will happen in any particular person’s case. These statistics can be confusing and may lead you to have more questions. Ask your doctor, whois familiar with your situation, how these numbers may apply to you.
What is a 5-year relative survival rate?
A relative survival rate compares people with the same type and stage of malignant
pleural mesothelioma (MPM) to people in the overall population. For example, if the 5-
year relative survival rate for a specific stage of MPM is 30%, it means that people
who have that cancer are, on average, about 30% as likely as people who don’t have
that cancer to live for at least 5 years after being diagnosed.
Where do these numbers come from?
The American Cancer Society relies on information from the Surveillance,
Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database, maintained by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), to provide survival statistics for different types of cancer.
The SEER database tracks 5-year relative survival rates for MPM in the United States,
based on how far the cancer has spread. The SEER database, however, does not
group cancers by AJCC TNM stages (stage 1, stage 2,stage 3, etc.). Instead, it groups
cancers into localized, regional, and distant stages:
Localized: The cancer is limited to the pleura.
Regional: The cancer has spread to nearby structures or to nearby lymph nodes.
Distant: The cancer has spread to distant parts of the body such as the liver,
bones, or pleura on the other side of the body
Understanding the numbers
These numbers apply only to the stage of the cancer when it is first
diagnosed. They do not apply later on if the cancer grows, spreads, or comes back after treatment.
These numbers don’t take everything into account. Survival rates are grouped
based on how far the cancer has spread, but your age and overall health, the type
of mesothelioma you have, how resectable the cancer is
, how well it responds to
treatment, and other factors can also affect your outlook.
People now being diagnosed with MPM may have a better outlook than these
numbers show. Treatments improve over time, and these numbers are based on
people who were diagnosed and treated at least 5 years earlier.
