What is Peritoneal Mesothelioma?

by James F. Howell

Peritoneal mesothelioma is a disease that affects the lining of the abdomen, or peritoneum. Like the other types of mesothelioma, it is caused by exposure to asbestos, which has been widely used in many industrial products, such as cement, brake linings, roof shingles, flooring products, textiles, and insulation.

Peritoneal mesothelioma is a relatively uncommon form of mesothelioma cancer that accounts for less than a quarter of all mesothelioma cases. Peritoneal mesothelioma, like other forms of mesothelioma, is inconspicuous until decades after asbestos exposure.
While peritoneal mesotheliomas are less common than pleural mesotheliomas, they tend to be more invasive, and thus often result in a shorter life expectancy for the patient. An early diagnosis of the disease is important. The relief and treatment of people with peritoneal mesothelioma improves dramatically the earlier it is detected. Unfortunately, it often goes undiagnosed until it is quite advanced.

The first step towards detecting peritoneal mesothelioma involves X-rays and CT scans, but a definitive diagnosis is only achieved through a biopsy, which usually involves removing a tiny piece of tissue for analysis. At this time, even though there are various treatment options available, such as surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy, there is no known cure for peritoneal mesothelioma.

Typical symptoms of peritoneal mesothelioma include abdominal pains, weakness, weight loss, loss of appetite, nausea, and abdominal swelling. Because these symptoms are so common, and may be attributed to numerous ailments other than mesothelioma, diagnosis is often delayed until it is too late for treatment to do much more than help the patient feel more comfortable.

About the Author
James Howell is a freelance writer and researcher. Find out more about Peritoneal Mesothelioma. Or learn more about Mesothelioma.

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Boston Lawyer Michael Shepard Taking Mesothelioma, Personal Injury, Asbestos Cases

Seeking compensation for injury caused by asbestos exposure is now easy. A mesothelioma lawyer who started with his mesothelioma cancer law practice in Boston now brings his services to Vermont, New Hampshire and Rhode Island. People who are suffering from mesothelioma and other asbestos related injuries that have affected their health and wellbeing can rely on Michael Shepard to fight for their rights and help them in claiming compensation.

Michael Shepard has an established reputation of being a compassionate attorney who, along with mesothelioma and asbestos related injuries, also helps people in their pain and suffering arising out of injuries inflicted to them due to the faults of others. If people are injured due to exposure to toxic chemicals, product defects, nursing home negligence, silica, talc, welding fumes automotive or aviation accidents, they should contact the attorneys office to seek guidance for obtaining compensation for the injury caused.

In his website, the mesothelioma cancer lawyer acknowledges that the time of the injured is precious and says “We know our clients want the freedom to see family and friends whenever they choose. We also know that because of their condition, they don’t want to be bogged down in legal matters. Through years of experience in this field, we have developed a streamlined approach to handling asbestos-related litigation that lessens the amount of time our clients spend dealing with lawyers and the courts. After a client’s brief, free, one-on-one consultation with us, we take the matter into our own hands, independently investigating the specific facts of the case, collecting crucial evidence and confronting the people who are responsible for your illness or injury. We make every effort to transform our clients’ “good” case into a “great” case that may secure the maximum compensation deserved.”

Whether the injured is in Boston, Vermont, New Hampshire or Rhode Island, Boston Mesothelioma cancer lawyers are ready to look into the case and assess the maximum compensation during the first free one to one consultation.

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Mesothelioma: The Silent Killer

by Patricia Woloch

On September 11, 2001, 2,602 people died in the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. Thousands more may die a slow and painful death caused by exposure to asbestos released in the collapse of the towers. Immediately after the attacks over 100,000 people were exposed to dangerous levels of asbestos and over 670,000 New Yorkers may still be at risk for developing environmental illness.

;Mesothelioma is cancer caused by asbestos exposure. The symptoms of mesothelioma can take 10 to 50 years to appear, but once the disease is diagnosed it progresses rapidly and most patients have less than a year to live. Asbestos levels after the 9/11 attacks were so extreme that symptoms have appeared as soon as two years after exposure.

The danger could have been minimized
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) repeatedly tried to issue warnings about the threat of airborne contaminants. These warnings would have given emergency workers and others the chance to protect themselves from airborne contaminants. The warnings were removed from the EPA press releases by the White House Council on Environmental Quality. In April, 2007, the U.S. Court of Appeals issued a decision supporting the Council’s actions.

First responder first to die
Emergency responder Deborah Reeve developed symptoms of asbestos related illness in 2003 and was diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2004. While she was save the lives of others during the aftermath of 9/11 she was unknowingly being exposed to massive amounts of asbestos which, leading to her own death in 2006. In the words of her husband David, “(Deborah) got killed on September 11, and she didn't die until March 15, 2006. She got killed and didn't know.”

The evidence was hiding in a shirt
Yehuda Kaploun worked at ground zero for about 48 hours immediately after the collapse. He saved the shirt he was wearing to honor the fallen of 9/11. In April, 2006, the New York Post reported that when a portion of that shirt was analyzed, it was found to contain 93,000 times the amount of chrysotile asbestos normally found in American cities.

The World Trade Center Cough
You may not have heard about mesothelioma in connection with 9/11, but you probably have heard of “the World Trade Center cough.” In April, 2007, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reported that 62% of those caught in the dust cloud, and 46% of those not caught in the cloud but living or working in the area now suffer from respiratory problems. The Mount Sinai Medical Center’s World Trade Center health study found that 85% of its 70,000 participants suffer from respiratory problems. First responders have been suffering respiratory problems since immediately after the attacks.

Who may be affected?
First responders are among those known to be adversely affected, but they are not the only ones. Anyone who was in the area during and after the collapse of the towers may have been exposed to dangerous levels of asbestos. The contamination lasted for weeks or months after the collapse. Even as tests were showing enormous amounts of asbestos in the air, officials were urging the public to return to the downtown area. People who lived and worked in the area, children going to school in the area, and anyone who happened to pass through, may have been affected. Because the disease can take up to 50 years after exposure to develop, it will be decades before we really know how many people were really killed by the events of 9/11 and the government’s cover-up of the contamination.

About the Author
If you live in Mobile, Alabama, or anywhere on the Mississippi or Alabama Gulf Coast, and believe that you or a loved one has become ill because of asbestos exposure, please contact the Alabama Mesothelioma lawyers at The Injury Lawyers, PC.

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How to overcome depression

Modern life is becoming faster and faster. Every day we have to solve different problems and meet many people just because you do not want to leg behind the pace of life or just earn money for a living.

Of course we like our job but one day your boss can give you the most difficult task which you will not be able to complete at once and as a result you can be so depressed to do anything at all. And of course, you will need depression help but it is not very easy. Some people start drinking a lot of alcohol or even use drugs. But it is not a way out because it can only make the situation worse. Only specialists can help because a depressed person already is in a situation where he does not see solutions of his problems. In this case guided meditation can become a useful tool because a specialist can teach a person to overcome all his problems himself. This effect is achieved with the help of meditation using special words and of course special music. This method is very effective and was used for a long time and proved to be very effective.

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How Is Mesothelioma Diagnosed?

by Ivan Chia

Diagnosing mesothelioma is often difficult, because the symptoms are similar to those of a number of other conditions. Diagnosis begins with a review of the patient's medical history, including any history of asbestos exposure. A complete physical examination may be performed, including x-rays of the chest or abdomen and lung function tests. A CT (or CAT) scan or an MRI may also be useful. A CT scan is a series of detailed pictures of areas inside the body created by a computer linked to an x-ray machine. In an MRI, a powerful magnet linked to a computer is used to make detailed pictures of areas inside the body. These pictures are viewed on a monitor and can also be printed.

A biopsy is needed to confirm a diagnosis of mesothelioma. In a biopsy, a surgeon or a medical oncologist (a doctor who specializes in diagnosing and treating cancer) removes a sample of tissue for examination under a microscope by a pathologist. A biopsy may be done in different ways, depending on where the abnormal area is located. If the cancer is in the chest, the doctor may perform a thoracoscopy. In this procedure, the doctor makes a small cut through the chest wall and puts a thin, lighted tube called a thoracoscope into the chest between two ribs. Thoracoscopy allows the doctor to look inside the chest and obtain tissue samples. If the cancer is in the abdomen, the doctor may perform a peritoneoscopy. To obtain tissue for examination, the doctor makes a small opening in the abdomen and inserts a special instrument called a peritoneoscope into the abdominal cavity. If these procedures do not yield enough tissue, more extensive diagnostic surgery may be necessary.

If the diagnosis is mesothelioma, the doctor will want to learn the stage (or extent) of the disease. Staging involves more tests in a careful attempt to find out whether the cancer has spread and, if so, to which parts of the body. Knowing the stage of the disease helps the doctor plan treatment.

Mesothelioma is described as localized if the cancer is found only on the membrane surface where it originated. It is classified as advanced if it has spread beyond the original membrane surface to other parts of the body, such as the lymph nodes, lungs, chest wall, or abdominal organs.

About the Author
Ivan Chia is an active online content writer. If you would like to learn more about mesothelioma, please visit: Mesothelioma Resource.

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Pleural Mesothelioma: A Quick Look

by James F. Howell

Pleural mesothelioma is one of several types of cancer linked to asbestos exposure. It is caused by asbestos fibers being ingested into the lungs and affects the pleural lining of the lungs. Pleural mesothelioma is a deadly and devastating disease with no known cure. There are a number of symptoms of pleural mesothelioma, and like other forms of mesothelioma, they can appear very non-specific and could be mistaken for a number of common diseases or illnesses. Shortness of breath, caused by pleural thickening which gradually contracts the breathing space, is often the first symptom of pleural mesothelioma. Cough, chest pain, difficulty swallowing, facial swelling, weight loss, fever, and rasping are some of the other symptoms of pleural mesothelioma. In many cases, however, individuals with the disease never experience symptoms at all until well after it has matured.

It typically takes several decades for the symptoms of pleural mesothelioma to develop, and once diagnosed, patients typically have a life expectancy of only a few months. Men between the ages of 50 and 70 are more commonly diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma than any other demographic, largely because asbestos was widely used in numerous industries from World War II until the 1970s, and due to the amount of time it takes for the symptoms to occur, it is just now being discovered that they have the disease.

The treatments that are currently available for pleural mesothelioma patients are primarily palliative, to ease the patient's suffering. These treatments include surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy.

About the Author
James Howell is a freelance writer and researcher. Find out more about Pleural Mesothelioma. Or learn more about Mesothelioma.

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