Malignant peritoneal mesothelioma is an extremely rare cancer. Only 100 to 500 cases are diagnosed in the US each year, making up less than 30% of all mesothelioma cases. Peritoneal mesothelioma is a cancer affecting the abdominal lining, or peritoneum (paira-tin-e-um), which is why is is sometimes referred to as abdominal mesothelioma. This membrane supports and covers the organs of the abdomen.

The peritoneum is made of two parts, the visceral and parietal peritoneum. The visceral peritoneum covers the internal organs and makes up most of the outer layer of the intestinal tract. Covering the abdominal cavity is the parietal peritoneum. Cells in these linings secrete a fluid which allows organs to move against one another. For instance, as the intestines move food through the body. The cells of the mesothelium are designed to create fluid, but the cancer can cause them to overproduce, creating a build up of excess fluid in the abdominal cavity…..

Because pleural mesothelioma is more common and often spreads to the peritoneal cavity, it is important to etermine if pleural mesothelioma is the primary cancer.

Although there’s no definitive explanation, it is widely believed that asbestos causes peritoneal mesothelioma in one of two ways. First, asbestos fibers may be ingested, and when in the intestinal tract, the fibers may work themselves into the peritoneal cavity and peritoneum. Second, they may be inhaled and transported through the lymph node system to the peritoneal cavity.

If you are wondering “do I have peritoneal mesothelioma?” you should seek the guidance of your physician immediately; like many cancers, early detection is very important. Malignant peritoneal mesothelioma symptoms may not appear until 20 to 30 years after the first exposure to asbestos. Symptoms are usually not specific to peritoneal mesothelioma, and most often accompany other, less serious medical issues. This may make diagnosing peritoneal mesothelioma more difficult. If you have a history of asbestos exposure, your should have regular check ups with your doctor and an awareness of peritoneal mesothelioma symptoms.

Ascites is the abnormal collection of fluid in the abdomen; when it is caused by cancer, it is referred to as malignant ascites. A cancer diagnosis is only made in about 10% of ascites cases, and of that 10%, peritoneal mesotheioma makes up only a very small percentage. Ascites can be quite uncomfortable, causing swelling of the abdomen, weight gain, indigestion, nausia, and swelling of the feet and ankles.

Fluid retention usually causes swelling; solid tumor masses may be responsible for pain. Despite the accumulated fluid, which often increases waist size, a patient’s appetite may be aversely affected by peritoneal mesothelioma resulting in weight loss.  Bowel obstruction: A blockage in the small or large intestine is a rare, and often late-occuring, symptom of peritoneal mesothelioma. Anemia:  A reduction in the number of red blood cells to below normal; this forces the heart and other organs to work harder to get oxygen where it’s needed. Fever: Infection is the most common cause of fever in cancer patients, but tumor cells can also produce fever-causing agents. A bowel obstruction may also cause fever.

Symptoms of peritoneal mesothelioma are not necessarily unique to the disease, so diagnosing peritoneal mesothelioma requires more than an observation of symptoms. Most symptoms associated with abdominal mesothelioma accompany other, often less serious, medical conditions. Most peritoneal mesothelioma diagnoses are made when the malignancy is in an advantage stage and diagnosis, alone, takes on average four months¹.

The first step in diagnosing peritoneal mesothelioma is a physical exam and patient history. If your doctor does not ask about your work history and potential mesothelioma risk factors, let him or her know about your asbestos exposure. A history of asbestos exposure is an important clue for your physician or diagnostician and neglecting to mention this could delay diagnosis.

Following a physical exam and a patient’s description of their symptoms, the next step in diagnosing peritoneal mesothelioma is usually to get some type of imaging of the abdomen. An x-ray, CT (or CAT) scan, or MRI may be performed. Although mesothelioma cannot be definitively diagnosed by visual confirmation, tumors may be visible, or an excess of serous fluid may be seen. The three primary types of peritoneal mesothelioma tumor development seen are:

In cases where fluid has accumilated in the abdomen, paracentesis may be performed; a needle is inserted into the peritoneal cavity to drain the excess fluid from the abdomen. Usually, cytologic testing on this ascetic (peritoneal) fluid (where specialists examine the fluid for abnormal cells) is not considered effective to diagnose peritoneal mesothelioma.

The next step in effectively diagnosing peritoneal mesothelioma is the collection of a biopsy. A biopsy is required so that the tissues and cells in question can be examined at a microscopic level. A fine-needle aspiration biopsy is usually performed at first because they are minorly invasive and quite safe. Immunohistochemical staining of the biopsy is regularly performed on collected samples. Sometimes referred to casually as “immunos,” these tests use special substances that color proteins and markers that indicate cancerous cells.

Sometimes further testing is required to make a definitive diagnosis, whether because the initial biopsy testing was inconclusive or a fine-needle biopsy could not be taken because of the location of the tumor and/or fluid pockets. If this is the case, the next step performed is often a peritoneoscopy. During this procedure, a local anesthetic is administered and a small incision allows the doctor looks inside the abdomen with a special tool called a peritoneoscope.

During the peritoneoscopy, a larger biopsy sample may be collected for testing. Finally, if more tissue is required for testing, diagnositic surgery or “open” biopsy may be required.

Diagnosing peritoneal mesothelioma is very difficult, and cases of peritoneal mesothelioma misdiagnosed or undiagnosed are unfortunately not uncommon. It is important to share your case history of work experience (especially in shipyards and at construction sites) and asbestos exposure potential with your physicians if you feel mesothelioma is a risk. Asbestos fibres can also be carried into the home on clothing, inadvertently exposing the deadly fibres, and the risk of mesothelioma, to family members.

In addition to determing a diagnosis, many diagnostic test also help determine the stage the cancer is in, providing a better idea of a patient’s prognosis. The chance of recovery depends on the size of the cancer, where the cancer is, how far the cancer has spread, how the cancer cells look under the microscope, how the cancer responds to treatment, and the patient’s age. Peritoneal mesothelioma is usually diagnosed when it has had time to advance; as with most types of cancer, early diagnosis is an excellent first step in fighting the disease.

A gene therapy approach is designed to treat mesothelioma by correcting the genes that allow a cancerous tumor to grow, potentially controlling tumor size and spread. Like immunotherapy, gene therapy clinical trials are currently underway. While a relatively new treatment, and still very much in the experimental stages, it is showing great promise and effectiveness in tests and clinical trials.

The goal of gene therapy is to get at the root cause of a disease. Because genes hold the instructions for making proteins and other building blocks necessary for cell function, if a gene’s instructions are incorrect or missing, the “ingredients” for a healthy cell and person may be lacking. Instead of dealing with the errant effects of faulty genes after the fact, gene therapy attempts to deliver the proper instructions to your cells, avoiding the negative affects altogether…..

The initial goals of gene therapy were, quite obviously, to address hereditary genetic disorders; diseases specifically tied to our genes. Initially, it was thought that our genes were “fixed blueprints” for our bodies that remained unchanged throughout our life. As it turns out, genes are more complicated and changing than that. The sun, smoking, chemicals and other factors can all damage our DNA and result in mutations that cause faulty genetic behavior. Because of this, many diseases not originally seen as candidates for gene therapy are, indeed, potential targets, including malignant mesothelioma.

Mesothelioma is a multifactorial disorder, a disorder that is the result of both inherited genetic mutations and mutations gained through environmental causes. In the case of mesothelioma, the environmental cause is usually exposure to asbestos. Cigarette smoking may compound the likelihood of developing mesothelioma, further revealing the complex nature of mulitfactorial diseases. Along with mesothelioma and other cancers, heart disease and diabetes are also multifactorial disorders. The multiple genetic mutations that cause these multifactorial disorders make them difficult to study and treat.

Combatting cancer with gene therapy is being researched in a variety of ways. Missing or altered genes linked to cancer development may be replaced with functional genes in an effort to prevent cancer.

Another method is to improve a patients immune response to cancer, stimulating the body’s natural ability to fend off cancer. This “cancer vaccine,” as it’s called, is a form of immunotherapy (sometimes called biologic therapy). Clinical trials have already had promising results in fighting non small cell lung cancer and other cancers.

Yet another approach involves making cancer cells more susceptible to the chemotherapy and radiation therapy techniques already in practice. Going a step further than just increasing sensitivity, some researchers are using “suicide genes” to tag cancer cells and then treating the patient with a benign compound or prodrug. The prodrug interacts with the “suicide gene” creating a toxic reaction within the cell, killing it.

Finally, anti-angiogenesis gene therapy involves the introduction of genes that inhibit blood vessel development (angiogenesis) or altering the genes that cause angiogenesis so they are “turned off.” Preventing the development of new blood vessels which feed the tumor keeps them from growing much larger than the head of a pin.

via:asbestos

In the operation, a conservation solution for transplantation was injected into the extracted right lung and cancer was removed after a cooling treatment was applied to last for eight hours. The lung was put back into the body after no cancer was confirmed in the lung. The patient recovered his vital capacity up to about 70% and can play golf and do other exercise, according to the hospital…….
The hospital has so far performed more than 70 operations for lung transplantation, accounting for the largest number among medical institutions in Japan.

via:lungcancer

asbestos lung mesothelioma

Lung cancer information about Asbestos.

Mesothelioma doctor
Its very useful video.must watch it.

Screening men for prostate cancer cut mortality rates by about half in a large study, researchers report. The screening test under investigation is called a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test, which measures blood levels of a protein produced by prostate gland cells and is a marker for prostate cancer.

PSA is considered a controversial screening test because it can detect cancers that may not advance during a man’s natural life span, resulting in possible over-treatment and reduced quality of life. These latest findings, published in the July 1 issue of Lancet Oncology, could shed new light on the potential benefits of PSA screening….. 

Last year, the American Urological Association recommended that men begin undergoing prostate cancer screening at age 40 instead of age 50, the group’s previous recommendation. This revision was criticized by some prostate cancer experts because of concerns that extensive screening would lead to over-diagnosis of the disease and create unnecessary anxiety among patients.

Mesothelioma Risk Factors
This video is about mesothelioma factors.