Know Your Enemy: Factors That Contribute to a Mesothelioma ...

Any diagnosis that involves the word ?cancer? can feel overwhelming and ominous, but cancer is a complicated entity whose prognosis is governed by many variables. Every single case is unique and there are many factors to consider when assessing the state and progression of the disease; a mesothelioma prognosis is no different.

Mesothelioma is most commonly found in association with the lining of the lung with some estimates reaching as high as 4 out of every 5 cases. This often leads to a misconception that it is a lung cancer and that a mesothelioma prognosis is tantamount to a lung cancer prognosis. However, this is not the case. Among the subtypes of mesothelioma, involvement of the lining of the lung, or the ?pleura?, is the most treatable, most easily detected, and most responsive to interventions.

A theme common to cancers in general is the idea of ?staging? where the disease is categorized as stage I-IV. Typically, stage I is confined to the region from which it originated, stage IV has spread to other organs, and stages II and III are in between the two extremes (with details that vary depending on the type of cancer). The lower the stage is, the better the prognosis is. This is especially true for a mesothelioma prognosis because the more confined the cancer is, the easier it is to attack and treat.

Identification of contributing factors is directly related to the idea of staging. Mesothelioma can be sub-clinically present for many years before any signs or symptoms arise. The significance of identifying environmental risk factors ? most notably a history of asbestos exposure ? is not limited to screening and prevention uses. It is also helpful in hindsight as a testament to the degree and nature of the exposure as well as to how long the disease may have been dormant. Occupational exposures such as shipyard work, the manufacturing of asbestos containing products, or the demolition of older homes are notorious for longstanding sustained exposure, especially if proper respiratory protection was not regularly implemented. Juxtaposed, a history of living in a home with asbestos insulation offers a much lesser degree of assault on the pleural tissue.

Assessing a mesothelioma prognosis involves not only identifying the ?What?? with a diagnosis, but also asking ?Where??, ?Why??, and ?For how long??. The location of the cancer, nature of causal factors, and duration of dormancy are all major contributors.

Source: http://www.obamaprops.com/121/know-your-enemy-factors-that-contribute-to-a-mesothelioma-prognosis

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