Marvin Hebert's Site

Cancer mesothelioma, which is usually acquired due to prolonged inhalation of asbestos, affects the protective lining of our internal organs called the mesothelium and is a life threatening disease. The disease has wrecked the lives of many workers and ruined their families. Even a ban on the use of asbestos at workplaces has not helped much because the cancer develops only after many years after exposure to the material.

There are mainly three types of mesothelioma - pleural, peritoneal and pericardial. All these are potential threats to human life and are detected only after thirty or more years making it extremely difficult to claim for damages from the employer. This affects the effectiveness of treatment also.

Many governments have taken steps to help the victims. The use of asbestos in work places has been banned and there are laws which ensure adequate compensation measures. This comes as a great comfort for the family members to cope with the tragedy. Apart from this more and more researches are going on to find better treatment options for the patients suffering from cancer mesothelioma.

The early symptoms of the disease are fatigue, fever, wheezing etc. The patient is made to go through a long series of medications including chemotherapy once diagnosed with the disease. Chemotherapy is extremely painful with many side effects like nausea, fever, rashes, sores, fatigue, diarrhea or constipation etc. This can make the life of the patients extremely miserable. Surgery and radiotherapy are also employed as part of the treatment.

With the advancement in medical technology newer tools and procedures are invented for early detection and treatment of cancer mesothelioma. Modern treatment methods include immunotherapy, angiogenesis, photodynamic therapy, gene therapy, complementary and alternative medicine etc. These days palliative care is becoming highly popular. This involves lessening the pain the patient has to endure.

Cancer mesothelioma, being a peculiar disease, requires long term clinical care where the combined effects of medical professionals, oncology social workers, psychologists and nutritionists are required. They provide solace and hope to the otherwise crestfallen patient and family members and give them a new urge to live. Without this urge, any treatment effort would prove futile.