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What Are The Four Stages Of Mesothelioma Cancer?
By David Arnold Livingston, Thu Dec 8th
One rare form of cancer is called Mesothelioma, a malignanttumor in the mesothelial tissues of the lungs and the abdomen,arising from the inhalation of asbestos. Its rarity is one ofthe reasons why a lot of people are not aware of this kind offatal disease. In fact, many people die of Mesotheliomaundiagnosed. Although there is now a growing awareness of thehazards of asbestos to health, still many have not heard ofMesothelioma and thus, have not understood its nature, cause,signs and treatment. Even some physicians find it hard to detectMesothelioma because its symptoms are akin to other diseaseslike lung cancer and pneumonia. Furthermore, it takes decadesfor a patient who was exposed to asbestos to developMesothelioma -- fifty years, at most. Being unaware of Mesothelioma poses higher risks since it detersdiagnosis and treatment. A person undergoing treatment must knowthe different stages of the cancer or the extent of the disease.Chances of recovering from Mesothelioma and the kind oftreatment depend on the stage of the illness. There arebasically two staging systems used for Pleural Mesothelioma(lungs): TNM system and Brighan system. These staging systemsare also used in other kinds of cancers; however, the first iscommonly used. There is no established method in determining thestage of the Peritoneal Mesothelioma cancer (abdominal) so theTNM system is used. There are three variables in the TNM system: tumor, lymph nodesand metastasis. In the earliest stage of Mesothelioma, stage I,the malignant Mesothelioma cells start to grow and multiply onlyone layer of the pleura. The pleura is the membrane thatencloses 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 alreadyaffected. In this case, the cancer patient is still in stage IMesothelioma.
In the second stage, the two layers of the pleura are alreadyaffected by Mesothelioma. Take note, however, that in thisstage, only one side of the body is affected. Normally, thepleura produces only small
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amount of lubricating fluid thatallows easy expanding and contracting of the lungs. The excessfluid is absorbed by the blood and the lymph vessels so there'sa balance between the amount of fluid produced and removed.During the second stage Mesothelioma, fluid starts to build upbetween the membrane of the lungs and the membrane of the chestwall, resulting to pleural effusion. The increase in the volumeof fluid produced causes shortness of breath and chest pain.Other Mesothelioma cancer patients experience dry and persistentcough. Diagnosis of the pleural effusion is achieved through achest x-ray. Stage III Mesothelioma means that the malignant cells havealready spread to the chest wall, esophagus and the lymph nodeson one part of the chest. The patient may suffer severe painnear the parts affected. When not treated immediately or whenthe Mesothelioma patient doesn't respond well to medication, thecancer may advance to the fourth stage. The fourth stageMesothelioma is formidable since at this stage the Mesotheliomacells have penetrated into the bloodstream and other organs inthe body like the liver, the bones and the brain. The lymphnodes on the other side of the chest may also be affected byMesothelioma in stage IV. Brighan staging system, on the other hand, determines whetherthe Mesothelioma can be surgically removed or not and whetherthe lymph nodes are affected or not. In stage I Mesothelioma,the lymph nodes are not yet affected and the patient can stillrecover through surgery. In stage II, surgery can still beexecuted but some lymph nodes have already been infiltrated bythe cancer cells. In stage III, the heart and chest wall arealready affected; thus, surgery is no longer advisable. Thelymph nodes in this stage, however, may or may not be affected.In the final stage, stage IV Mesothelioma, cancer cells havealready gone to the bloodstream and other parts of the body likethe heart, brain, bone and liver. In most cases, a patient whohas reached stage IV Mesothelioma only has four to twenty-fourmonths to live. About the author:David Arnold Livingston is a believer in gaining knowledgearound Health issues and recommends, as a resource:http://www.newmesothelioma.com/Mesothelioma Cancer/
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