Pericardial Mesothelioma - Symptoms, Treatment and Diagnosis

The main reason responsible for pericardial mesothelioma is asbestos exposure. Inhalation of asbestos fibers can damage different portions of your body. Similar to other mesothelioma forms, symptoms of pericardial mesothelioma can take ten to fifteen years to show up. If you have been diagnosed with this disease, you will find cancerous tissues around the heart lining. The pericardium plays a vital part in body functioning especially when it comes to protecting your heart.



Symptoms



Tissue expansion and fluid accumulation will happen when there is a fast growth of the cancerous tumors. The fluid can have a negative impact on the proper functioning of your heart causing irregular heartbeat and chest pain. When you complain of chest pain, you are going to be diagnosed. Some of the less common symptoms of this disease are cough, fever, fatigue and shortness of breath.



Individuals suffering from pericardial mesothelioma can exhibit all three types of mesothelioma cancer cells. It includes epithelioid mesothelioma, biphasic mesothelioma and sarcomatoid mesothelioma. Your prognosis can be affected by the kind of cancer cells. Recent study has come to the conclusion that individuals with biphasic mesothelioma cancer cells normally have a shorter life expectancy.



Treatments

Cancer surgery is not a good option for individuals that are diagnosed with pericardial mesothelioma. Prognosis for patients of pericardial mesothelioma is grim and often palliative treatment is an only option available for them. By opting for this treatment, your overall life quality is going to improve. Another good thing about this treatment is that it decreases the complexity of symptoms that happen because of fluid buildup in the pericardium. To get rid of excess fluid, there is a strong possibility that fine needle routine can be implemented. Radiation therapy can also play a significant part in removing excess fluid.

Diagnosis



Accurate and quick pericardial mesothelioma diagnosis is tough because of the non-specificity of the symptoms. To diagnose this form of cancer, your health care provider needs to take into consideration your symptoms, past medical record and current medical state. In the initial stage, all the focus is on the medical records and conducting physical examination.



To evaluate the exact location of cancer, your health care provider will conduct plenty of imaging tests. MRI tests are the way to go if you are looking to get an idea of cancer stage. The diagnosis of pericardial mesothelioma ends with a biopsy. The main objective of doing biopsy is to get a proper understanding of the cancer origin point.



While there is still no cure for mesothelioma cancer, the forms of treatment and care are being worked on so that the life expectancy of patients can increase. New and improved methods of treatments are being tested to work on the quality of patient's life and reduce pain.

How Do You Treat Pericardial Mesothelioma?

Of all the cancers caused by asbestos dust (mesothelioma), pericardial mesothelioma is the most rare, accounting for a fraction of all cases (5%). It is a cancer that grows on the pericardium (the lining of the heart). This is a delicate 'film', and any infection on the pericardium can have deadly consequences.



Once an individual has been diagnosed with pericardial mesothelioma they are offered three different treatment options. These are radiation, surgery and chemotherapy. Pericardial mesothelioma is extremely difficult to treat (due to the intricacies involved in removing the tumours from the pericardium), and a patient's chances of survival are slim. All three methods have a poor success rate mainly due to the fact that pericardial mesothelioma is detected in the mature stages of development. (The reason for this is because in the early stages of the cancer the symptoms resemble those of diseases such as pneumonia). The prognosis for a patient undergoing treatment at this point (mature stage) is usually less than a year.



Before treatment, the patient requires a doctor's evaluation in order to determine which of the three treatments are suitable for him/her. Details such as age, weight, medical history, and general well-being are considered prior to the commencement of treatment. So, how do you treat pericardial mesothelioma?



Radiation - As with all cancer treatments that use this method, large doses of radiation are used to kill the cancerous cells on the pericardium. The downside to radiation treatment is that not only are you killing off the cancerous cells, but you are also damaging the vital organs in close proximity to the heart, namely the lungs. The heart also gets damaged (due to the large doses of radiation).



Surgery - We can break this down into two parts; aggressive surgery and palliative procedures. Aggressive surgery involves the removal of the cancerous cell. Since these are very close to the heart and lungs, this makes it an extremely precarious procedure and one that requires an extremely skilled surgeon.

Palliative procedures are used in the latest of stages of pericardial mesothelioma and serve the sole purpose of reducing the symptoms. Usually at this stage the cancer is practically incurable.



Chemotherapy - This is the most widely-used of cancer therapies which involves the use of drugs to kill the cancerous cells. Unfortunately, the majority of drugs used have a low success rate with pericardial mesothelioma. Research is being conducted to come up with a cocktail of drugs that have a more favourable outcome.



There does exist another form of treatment which involves using all three aforementioned treatment options. It is known as Dual Therapy. Surgery is used to remove the cancerous cells, then chemotherapy and radiation are used to kill the remaining cells. The success rate for this method is higher than just using radiation, surgery or chemotherapy alone, but can still be dangerous.

The Facts About Pericardial Mesothelioma

Pericardial mesothelioma is a very rare form of mesothelioma and accounts for approximately 5% of all mesothelioma cases. This form of mesothelioma affects the lining that surrounds the heart and is a deadly cancer if not treated agressively in its early stages.



The cause of pericardial mesothelioma is exposure to asbestos dust and fibres. As little as a couple of months of exposure to asbestos fibres can lead to pericardial mesothelioma between 30-50 years later. Due to this long latency period of the disease, it is very difficult to diagnose before the cancer has developed and matured fully. Those suffering from mesothelioma are elderly men aged 60-70 because this was the generation that worked with asbestos with little protection from its dust and fibres. The symptoms of the cancer have just started to show for these men due to the long time that the effects of mesothelioma take to come out. Many of these men are now lodging multi-million dollar lawsuits against the companies who exposed them to asbestos without sufficient protection. Asbestos fibres reach the lining of the heart by being inhaled and then getting lodged in the lungs. From the lungs they can either move into the lymphatic system and get transported to the lining of the heart or they can just pass slowly to the lining of the heart over time. Over a long period of time being exposed to asbestos, these fibres build up and once enough have accumilated in the lining heart, pericardial mesothelioma is a possibility.



There are a number of symptoms assosiated with pericardial mesothelioma. However, these are only felt when the cancer has matured and is in its late stages of development. These symptoms include, persistent coughing, shortness of breath, chest pain and palpitations. Other symptoms typical of all types of mesothelioma include loss of appetite, nausea and weight loss. Anyone who recognises that they have these symptoms or know someone who does then is encouraged by all leading medical advisors to seek medical help immediately. For more information on the symptoms of pericardial mesothelioma go to [http://www.1-mesothelioma.co.uk]



There is no certain cure to pericardial mesothelioma and all of the treatment methods used have a poor success rate. The chances of survival of a patient depend strongly on how early and aggressively the cancer is treated. This is why it is important to receive a diagnosis for pericardial mesothelioma as soon as possible. Treatment methods include chemotherapy, radiation therapy and surgery. More information on these methods of treatment can be found at [http://www.1-mesothelioma.co.uk/treatment.html]



Research into cures for pericardial mesothelioma is being conducted in labs all over the United States and many pharmaceutical companies are also investigating new drugs. As yet, research has only discovered a limited amount.

Pericardial Mesothelioma Treatment and Information

Pericardial mesothelioma is the cancer that affects the pericardium of the heart. The disease is mostly associated with those that are exposed to asbestos-related environment. It is not known exactly how the asbestos particles get embedded on the membranous lining of heart. But believed that asbestos particles mostly travel from lungs through the bloodstream into the heart. Once these particles get embedded, it becomes difficult to remove them from body. These particles affect changes inside the pericardium eventually causing uncontrolled cell growth. With the growth of cancerous cells inside the pericardial membrane, the membrane gets filled with excess fluid exerting pressure on the heart and creating various symptoms and also intervenes with the function of heart.



Common warning symptoms of a pericardial mesothelioma:



* Intense chest pain



* Irregular heartbeat and palpitations



* Difficulty in breathing



* Continuous coughing



* Fatigue with little exertion



However, the symptoms vary with patients as well as with the stages of this disease. A thorough history of the patient is essential to arrive at the correct diagnosis.



Tests and Diagnoses:



It is difficult to have correct diagnosis of the pericardial mesothelioma as the symptoms coincide with other conditions as well. Apart from medical history, some examinations need to be undertaken such as series of imaging tests to determine the exact location and nature of the pericardial mesothelioma. However, the final stage of this cancer is only determined by a biopsy. Either fluid is removed from the pericardium or some tissue is taken and studied under lens.



Treatment Of Pericardial Mesothelioma



If the Pericardial Mesothelioma is in its early stages, then surgical removal of localized tumors is opted. However, it is associated with greater risk because of its proximity with heart. However, not all cases can be treated with surgery. In most cases, due to advanced stages of this disease, palliative treatment remains the only option. This approach helps to improve the quality of living of those enduring pericardial mesothelioma. Chemotherapy is not a viable option in this case.



Latest Treatment



Research is still underway to find cure for this deadly disease. Several studies and clinical trials are in progress to find ways to increase the lifespan of the cancer patients. Alternative therapies such as yoga, massage, acupuncture, nutritional supplements and meditation coupled with either gene therapy or immunotherapy can be beneficial.

Pericardial Mesothelioma: A Concise Definition

Mesothelioma is a cancer of the epithelium that lines the lungs, the abdomen, or the heart. Pericardial Mesothelioma is the cancer of the lining of the heart, known as the pericardium, hence the name pericardial mesothelioma.



This rare form of mesothelioma accounts for small percentage of all cases, roughly 5%. The pericardium has an extremely important role as it protects the heart from any damage. Should an individual become afflicted with this cancer, they should take it very seriously and seek specialized medical attention. If left untreated during the early stages of diagnosis, it can become a terminal illness with a very low survival rate.



As with all forms of mesothelioma, pericardial mesothelioma is caused by inhaling asbestos. Those who are most at risk are construction workers and asbestos manufacturers. The wearing of a protective mask can help to minimize the inhalation of asbestos dust in to the lungs (since the asbestos fibres get lodged in the lungs). If you have noticed, the majority of workers aren't properly protected when working on construction sites - even in industrialized nations such as the United States. One would expect to see otherwise, thinking that companies follow OSHA directives. That isn't the case all the time.



During the middle of the 20th century (roughly between 1950-1970) asbestos was one of the most popular building materials, and scores of young men were exposed to it. Now, in the 21st century (some 50 years later - the latency period of pericardial mesothelioma), these young men who are now over 60 years of age are beginning to exhibit the symptoms of pericardial mesothelioma. As a result, multi-million dollar lawsuits are being filed against the companies that employed them.



The problem with pericardial mesothelioma is that its symptoms only start appearing in the cancer's latest stages, making it even more difficult to treat. The main symptoms are shortness of breath, palpitations, chest pains and a persistent cough. Other symptoms of pericardial mesothelioma include nausea, weight loss and loss of appetite. Another problem with these symptoms is that they are similar to those of pneumonia (shortness of breath), and this tends to lead to the wrong treatment being administered to an individual afflicted with pericardial mesothelioma.



Treatment options for pericardial mesothelioma include chemotherapy, radiation, surgery, and dual therapy. The survival rate is extremely low, and it is important to stress that one's chances of healing are increased should treatment commence in the early stages of diagnosis.