Mesothelioma: The Hidden Cost of Asbestos

Mesothelioma is a type of lung cancer centered in the mesothelium, the protective lining that covers most of the body’s internal organs. It can also begin in the lining of the abdominal cavity, in the heart, in the sac that surrounds the heart, or in other areas. Malignant mesothelioma spreads rapidly, often throughout the body. No known cure for mesothelioma exists.

Mesothelioma is linked to exposure to asbestos, a mineral fiber once widely used in construction, shipbuilding, the oil and plastics industry, the automotive industry, and in many consumer products. A person diagnosed with mesothelioma is likely a victim of negligence on the part of an outside party and deserves compensation for his or her injury.

Causes and Symptoms

Mesothelioma is a cancer that results from a genetic mutation within the cells of the body. The mutation causes healthy cells to change into malignant cells (cells that grow uncontrollably). These out-of-control cells multiply rapidly, forming tumors that interfere with the body’s functions; the tumors in turn spread more malignant cells through the entire body.

Mesothelioma appears in a variety of forms, and no universal cause of mesothelioma has been discovered. Researchers have discovered that health, lifestyle, and the environment play a significant role in the development of the disease; however, the primary cause of mesothelioma in most people is exposure to asbestos.

Mesothelioma and Asbestos

Asbestos is a fibrous mineral known for its durability, ease of extraction and processing, and its high resistance to heat, flame, and electric currents. It comes in many forms, including woven material, and is found in many products – especially in the manufacturing, resource extraction and processing, and home construction industries.

The toxic effects of asbestos have long been known, and most industrialized countries have placed limits on its use. Prior to the enactment of these limits, however, many people were exposed to occupational asbestos, despite the knowledge by manufacturers and employers of its dangerous nature.

Mesothelioma Symptoms

Mesothelioma is not a particularly easy disease to diagnose. Its symptoms, while serious, are common and generally nonspecific. This lack of specificity may lead to a delay in diagnosis.

Common mesothelioma symptoms:

• Shortness of breath
• Chest pains
• Dry coughs
• Unusual lumps of tissue under the skin
• Extreme weight loss
• Abdominal swelling
• Constipation
• Difficulty swallowing
• Swelling of the face and neck

The classic sign of pleural mesothelioma is called effusion, which is the buildup of fluid between the pleura covering the chest wall/diaphragm and the pleura covering the lungs. Symptoms include shortness of breath, chest pain and (sometimes) persistent cough. A thoracic radiogram (chest X-ray) is necessary for a reliable diagnosis.

Oddly, the right lung is affected by symptoms of mesolthelioma much more often (60 percent of the time) than is the left lung. The reason behind this difference is unknown. Patients with symptoms in both lungs make up only about 5 percent of the total.

Patients may also exhibit fever, night sweats and weight loss.

The symptoms of peritoneal (abdominal) mesothelioma are somewhat different: pain or swelling in the abdomen, nausea, weight loss, bowel obstruction, anemia, or swelling of the feet have all been described.

Who is at Risk?

Mesothelioma is a disease that threatens all of us. However, research and experience have shown that mesothelioma victims tend to be more numerous among certain groups of people, for example, those who have worked in construction or been in the military. The reason for this selectivity is asbestos.

Asbestos-related mesothelioma is most common among workers in trades that involve contact with asbestos products. However, anyone who works with or around asbestos is likely contaminated with it, and can carry the invisible fibers with them on their work clothes or body. For this reason, those who have regular physical contact with someone who works with or around asbestos runs the risk of developing asbestos-related mesothelioma themselves.

Asbestos is an environmental hazard as well. Although asbestos is no longer used as a building material, it remains an important industrial mineral that is used in many manufacturing processes, as well as in certain consumer products. Automobile brakes, for example, often contain asbestos linings. With wear, asbestos fibers are released as dust into the air we breathe.

Happily, despite the general public’s daily exposure to asbestos, mesolthelioma is an uncommon disease among otherwise healthy people. Those who bear the highest mesothelioma risk factors are workers engaged in trades where regular and prolonged contact with asbestos is a part of the job.

This includes construction workers, military personnel (active duty or veteran), pipefitters,shipyard workers,electricians, steamfitters, power plant workers, demolition and abatement workers, railroad workers, steel mill personnel, plumbers, maintenance workers, drywallers, plasterers, painters, teachers, and people in many other occupations – plus their family members. Residents in neighborhoods adjacent to factories and facilities where asbestos is used are also at increased risk.

Diagnosis

In most cases, the initial diagnosis of mesothelioma is made by the patient’s primary care physician (PCP). He or she knows the patient’s medical and pharmaceutical history, habits, and lifestyle, and can more readily differentiate between mesothelioma symptoms and those of other diseases.

If the PCP suspects mesothelioma, he or she will most likely order one of three different types of diagnostic tests to “rule out” the disease. These three possible tests are:

• Non-Invasive Diagnostic Tests (e.g., X-rays, CT scans, MRIs, PET scans, etc.), which do not involve the removal of blood, body fluid or tissue samples
• Minimally Invasive Diagnostic Tests (e.g., fine needle biopsy) during which a technician will remove and examine small samples of the body’s fluids, such as tissue, blood, pleural fluid, and biologic markers
• Invasive Diagnostic Tests (e.g., biopsies) that involve taking larger tissue samples for examination under an electron microscope or with other tools

Even with these tools, mesothelioma remains more difficult to recognize when the disease is in its early and treatable stages. Tragically, many a mesothelioma diagnosis is made after it becomes too advanced to treat.

If you suspect you have mesothelioma, you should immediately report your symptoms to your primary care physician and submit yourself for evaluation.

Tests to Diagnose Mesothelioma

Diagnosis of mesothelioma is a multi-stage process involving a variety of laboratory procedures. While no tests for mesothelioma exist, a variety of related tests can be performed to confirm a preliminary diagnosis of mesothelioma.

These “mesothelioma tests” start with the physician’s examination of the patient’s medical and work history or any exposure asbestos. Any proximity to or exposure of the patient to asbestos or asbestos-bearing material during his or her lifetime dramatically raises the probability that mesothelioma is behind the patient’s presenting symptoms. A thorough medical examination is also performed.

If mesothelioma is suspected the examining physician may order one or more diagnostic laboratory tests to confirm their suspicions. For example, X-ray, CT, and/or MRI scans may be performed, and biopsy samples of the patient’s blood, body fluids and tissue examined for the presence of malignant mesothelial cells.

If the signs of mesothelioma are not present, the preliminary diagnosis of mesothelioma will be discarded and the search will begin for other causes behind the patient’s symptoms.

In the future, a dedicated test for mesothelioma may be possible. For now, however, the only way to discover if a given patient has mesothelioma is through an exacting series of tests for signs of the cancer.

Three Primary Types of Mesothelioma

• Pleural – Mesothelioma in the lining of the lung.
• Periotoneal – Mesothelioma in the abdominal cavity.
• Pericardial – Mesothelioma of the sac surrounding the heart.

Malignant Mesothelioma Types

The disease is further divided into three types of malignant mesothelioma based upon its cellular structure.

• Epithelioid mesothelioma (50% to 70% of all malignant mesothelioma cases – the most common type)
• Sarcomatoid mesothelioma (10% to 15% of mesothelioma cases – the least common type)
• Mixed or Biphasic mesothelioma (20% to 40% of mesothelioma cases – a combination of the above types)

Although many forms of therapy exist, no cure for mesothelioma is known.

Stages of Mesothelioma

Mesothelioma is a complex disease that can be difficult to manage. Over time, doctors have discovered that dividing the progression and treatment of the pleural form of the disease into distinct phases allows them and their patients to better determine the correct treatment according to the mesothelioma stages.

Staging is the process of characterizing the patient’s condition based upon the spread of the cancer and the location of tumor masses within the body. The patient’s treatment and prognosis are then determined based upon the current stages of the mesothelioma. Data from physical exams, biopsies and internal medical imaging (CT scans, etc.) are combined to determine the patient’s stage.

Three staging systems exist for the management of pleural mesothelioma: the Butchart System, the TNM System (Tumor-Node-Metastasis), and the Brigham System. Each of these staging systems has its strengths and weaknesses, and a given case may be staged in terms of more than one system.

These systems allow doctors to determine how much time the patient has remaining, which treatments (if any) will allow him or her to extend that time, and the best methods by which to manage pain and loss of function as the disease progresses.​

Mesothelioma Treatments

A variety of treatment options exist for patients with mesothelioma. Although no cure exists for the disease, effective mesothelioma treatment centered on extending patient lifespan to the maximum and protecting his or her quality of life for as long as possible does exist. The traditional options for stemming the growth of cancerous cells are radiation treatments, surgery and chemotherapy.

The traditional options for stemming the growth of cancerous cells are radiation treatments, surgery and chemotherapy.

Therapeutic exposure of the patient to ionizing radiation is effective at easing pain and reducing shortness of breath, but therapeutic ionizing radiation can only be used in limited amounts to avoid creating significant radiation injury to the patient.

Chemotherapy, whether based upon pills, intravenous drugs or medicines injected directly into the pleural mesothelioma, can also disrupt the growth of tumors

Among the types of surgery employed for pleural mesothelioma patients are pleurectomy/decortication (removal of diseased pleural mesothelium) and pneumonectomy (lung removal). Similar but less effective surgical operations are performed on those with peritoneal and pericardial mesothelioma as well.

New treatments for mesothelioma are constantly under research and development, and techniques such as light therapy and experimental drugs offer much hope in this regard. Properly employed, these mesothelioma treatments can substantially prolong the life of the mesothelioma patient.​

Mesothelioma Case Results

• Client was a 68 year old carpenter that was exposed to asbestos from 1959 to 2000 while working in Pennsylvania. He was exposed to a variety of building materials including joint compounds, ceiling tiles and floor tile. The case settled with all but one defendant prior to trial. At trial we were able to secure a verdict for our client in the amount of $7 Million. To date, the client has received settlements totaling $3,857,497.50, prior to attorneys’ fees of $1,542,999.00 and litigation expenses of $150,249.81.

• Client was a 74 year old man that was exposed to asbestos from 1954 to 1990 while working as a pipefitter at various commercial and industrial jobsites in Pennsylvania. He was exposed to a variety of asbestos-containing products including gaskets, packing, blankets, pipes and joint compounds. The case settled for the gross amount of $3,257,557.17, prior to attorneys’ fees of $1,140,145.00 and litigation expenses of $52,134.17.

• Client was a 66 year old man that was exposed to asbestos from 1969 to 1996 while working as a mechanic at a power plant in Pennsylvania. He was exposed to a variety of asbestos containing products including cement pipe, gaskets, valves, pumps and turbines. The case settled for the gross amount of $3,013,983.88, prior to attorneys’ fees of $1,205,593.00 and litigation expenses of $176,162.54.

Glossary

Mesothelioma can be bewildering. The amount of terminology involved in any medical diagnosis is enough to baffle anyone not involved in the health care profession. Add to this the relative infrequency of the mesothelioma diagnosis itself and the entire subject becomes nearly incomprehensible.

In order to deal rationally with a mesothelioma diagnosis, we must first understand what we are dealing with. Bearing this in mind, the first order of business is to gain a basic knowledge of the terminology of mesothelioma. The following mesothelioma glossary is designed to help.

Mesothelioma is a complex disease, and any complete glossary of terms related to it would necessarily be long. To save time and provide only the most relevant information related to mesothelioma lawsuits, we have therefore reduced the glossary down to the four most important words.

By learning the meanings of these four words, you will be able to grasp the basics of mesothelioma in terms of how it affects you.

The four words related to mesothelioma that you should know are:

• Asbestos
• Mesothelium
• Malignancy
• Staging

The meanings of these four words will, when taken together, impart to you the essential facts about mesothelioma in terms a layperson can understand, enabling you to begin dealing with the diagnosis on an informed and rational basis.

Get Legal Help

If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with mesothelioma, seeking legal help is essential to ensure you receive the compensation you deserve. An experienced attorney can help navigate the complexities of asbestos-related claims, hold responsible parties accountable, and pursue compensation for medical expenses, lost wages, and pain and suffering. With the right legal support, you can focus on your health while they fight for your justice.

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