what is mesothelioma?

What can be done to prevent the disease? Since the 1970s, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration have regulated the asbestos industry in the U.S. In the past, asbestos was used as a fire retardant and an insulator. Other products are now used in its place. The controversy involving exposure to different forms of asbestos continues.

Chemotherapy is the use of drugs for treating cancer. The drugs can be swallowed in pill form or they can be injected by a needle into a vein or muscle. Chemotherapy is systemic therapy. This means that the drug enters the bloodstream and circulates throughout the body (through the whole system) to reach and destroy the cancer cells.

Most side effects disappear once treatment is stopped. There are remedies for many of the temporary side effects of chemotherapy. For example, anti emetic drugs can be given to prevent or reduce nausea and vomiting. If you experience any side effects, be sure to talk with your doctor

Conventional mesothelioma therapies include surgery, radiation and chemotherapy. You should keep in mind that if you choose one course of action for mesothelioma treatment, you may preclude other courses. All of your options should be considered as soon as possible.

Mesothelioma disease causes the cells of the lining to become abnormal and malignant.The result of asbestos exposure, mesothelioma comes in three forms: pleural mesothelioma; peritoneal mesothelioma; and pericardial mesothelioma. All three types have a variety of associated symptoms, and there are some symptoms that are common to all three types of the disease. In all cases of the disease, sufferers are unlikely to even realise that there is a problem until many years after they have actually contracted mesothelioma from regular exposure to asbestos.
The symptoms of all types of mesothelioma do not generally manifest for several decades after contraction. This can make the disease difficult to diagnose and all too often is too late to save the patient by the time a diagnosis is made.
Pleural Mesothelioma:
The most common form of mesothelioma is pleural mesothelioma. This is where the cancer affects the lungs and the protective lining and cavity of the lungs. The symptoms of pleural mesothelioma result from pleural effusion, which is a build up of fluid between the lung lining and the chest cavity. Sufferers of pleural mesothelioma may experience some or all of the following symptoms: difficulty in breathing, difficulty in swallowing, shortness of breath, persistent coughing, weight loss, fever, coughing up of blood, and rasping.
Peritoneal Mesothelioma:A rarer form of mesothelioma is peritoneal mesothelioma. This is where the cancer affects the stomach and abdomen. The cancer can start in the abdominal area and spread to other parts of the body, but the tumours that press against the wall of the abdomen can cause some or all of the following symptoms: abdominal pain, abdominal swelling, nausea, loss of appetite, vomiting, breathing problems, chest pain, bowel obstruction, anaemia, fever, and blood clotting abnormalities. Pericardial Mesothelioma:The last and the rarest of the mesothelioma types is pericardial mesothelioma. This is where the cancer affects the heart and the cavity that surrounds the heart. The tumours affecting pericardial mesothelioma patients can cause some or all of these symptoms: chest pain, shortness of breath, trouble breathing, persistent coughing, and palpitations.
There are also cases of other asbestos related diseases such as asbestosis and respiratory problems that have stemmed from exposure to this potentially fatal material. Anyone that has worked with asbestos should see their doctor if they have any onset of this type of problem or if they are concerned and have doubts.
As you can see, the symptoms for all three types of mesothelioma are non-specific, which means that they could be the result of a number of more common diseases that are associated with the same symptoms. Many of the symptoms are the same as those displayed by viral pneumonia patients, and the disease if often mistaken for something else.
If your is unaware that you have been exposed to asbestos, he or she is unlikely to assume that you may have mesothelioma and will instead test for a number of other more common diseases that are associated with your symptoms. People who have worked with asbestos or who have close contact with someone that works with asbestos should therefore always be vigilant in looking out for any of these symptoms and seeking medical advice if any or all of the symptoms manifest. They should also make their doctor aware that they have worked with asbestos so that no further time is wasted in testing for other types of disease. Much of the delay in diagnosing mesothelioma comes from lack of information and awareness on both the part of the doctor and the patient.
However, it is up to the patient, who is aware of the asbestos exposure, to increase the chances of a speedy diagnosis by making the doctor aware of the circumstances and keeping an eye out of any tell the tale signs that mesothelioma may be present.

My journey into the realm of alternative cancer treatment began in 1996, when I overcame a devastating and "untreatable" cancer by using an "alternative" treatment. Since that time, I have actively researched in order to understand and present the truth about successful alternative cancer treatments. In order to properly understand alternative medicine, we should first understand something about conventional medicine. In the early 1900's, alternative medicine was taught in schools and practiced along side of conventional medicine.

Pharmacists made up their own formulations with such medicines as "oil of smoke" and perhaps, a bucket of water on the back porch with nails rusting away to produce an iron tonic. A "bone setter", was an un-lettered practitioner who was relied upon to set broken bones. At one time, cocaine was sold in drug stores as a health aid and radium compounds were available as an internal "patent medicine". We would be rightly shocked to see these things happening today.

In 1906, President Theodore Roosevelt signed the Wiley act, and what is now called the FDA was born. It has grown from a single chemist who was employed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 1862 to be the organization regulating the goods and services that represent one out of every four dollars spent in the U.S. It has gone through the metamorphosis of name changes and re structuring until it now has nearly a million employees and operates on a budget of over a billion dollars a year.

I am sure that we all agree that there is an urgent need for government responsibility to minister in the affairs of public safety. We need to know that someone in authority is regulating the inspection and certification of consumable products and invasive services such as artificial heart valves and internal medicines.

Conventional medicine is a captive of the FDA. It can offer no product or perform any service that is not approved by the FDA. On the face of it, this seems to be a very good thing, doesn't it?

There are three major considerations that intercede in the process. They are the amoral character of corporate structure, scientific proof of efficacy, and economics.

As an example, we know that the De Beers family owns the diamond market. Diamonds are plentiful and inexpensive. They are carted around by the bushel. The market is controlled to elevate the price of a diamond to many times its worth. Considering the emotional value that we place on a diamond, and the special nature of it's representation, it makes no great difference in people's lives if a diamond engagement ring costs many times more than it would otherwise. In fact, the cost may enhance its romantic value.

However, when the same kind of purpose is expressed in the vital areas of peoples lives such as health care, an entirely different kind of issue is raised. People do not need diamonds to flourish, but everyone needs health care services. I have no argument with trauma care. Our generation is the most fortunate ever. We have a longer life expectancy and better health than generations before us. Antibiotics and other interventions have provided relief from diseases that have destroyed civilizations in the past. This is largely due to the great improvement in health services provided by corporate America.

It is in the area of what we call "alternative" medicine that the difficulty rises. The practices of 100 years ago of using "whatever works" has been replaced by a strict and expensive protocol that requires millions of dollars per item in order for it to be approved. The amoral (operating in a system that does not have "morality" as one of its parameters) nature of business excludes altruism and emphasizes bottom line economics. This is indeed proper and necessary.

This is not to say that drug manufacturers are not charitable. They routinely donate drugs and other products to people who are caught up in grave emergencies. However, it is their purpose and practice to emphasize their power in the marketplace. Stockholders expect that their investment interest to be promoted. This results in the "prudent" business practices of increasing market share by overcoming competition.

Consider the recent scandal that involved the invasion of the privacy of the patient- doctor relationship by inducing the doctor's office staff to provide the names and prescriptions of patients. Stolen letter heads with messages from their "doctor" instructing them to change their prescription medication to the one offered by the particular manufacturer. This is, hopefully, an isolated incident, but it does point out the extreme degree that manufacturers can and sometimes do take to enhance their market share.

It is in this very aggressive atmosphere that alternative medical practice finds itself.

Alternative medicine is competition to our conventional medical system. In response to this competition, manufacturers employ every device available to them to oppose the incursion of alternative medicine into the market. Again, that is just plain "good business" and is necessary and to be expected in a competitive market place. It really doesn't make any difference if alternative medicine is more effective, less expensive and kinder to the patient. If it can't be patented and owned by a manufacturer, they will oppose it by every means at their disposal.

Please read the section entitled; Why does not your regular doctor not prescribe alternative treatments?

Now we get to the point. Alternative medicine is any treatment that is not approved by the FDA. It may be effective or it may be fraud. It encompasses the whole spectrum of consideration from metaphysics to aroma therapy. Because it is un regulated, it can be anything. How can a person determine what is real and effective?

It is with this enigma in mind that I have researched in order to find some common attributes that relate to successful alternative cancer treatments and to assemble them into a presentation that offers an overview of those considerations which have, according to my research and experience, provided success.

There are several approaches to alternative cancer treatment and there are advocates for all of them with their success stories. I talked to a woman who was rescued by the Hoxsey treatment and has lived for 40 years so far after she was opened up and found to be "full of cancer" and sent home to die. I talked to another woman who had a similar situation and was successfully treated by using Cancell. Many have found success by using Laetrile, Essiac, Taheebo tea, Tian yian, vitamin C, The Rife Machine, MGN-3 and many more.

I have learned that a large segment of successful alternative treatments are based upon diet. It is interesting that the FDA will not consider any treatments based upon nutrition. This means that such options will never be tested and approved. Regardless of how effective they may be, your doctor will never be authorized to prescribe them.

I have assembled and organized these basic nutritional elements into a plan that has been successfully used by many people for several years. This is not a "hard and fast" program. There are many deviations practiced by different agencies. For instance; some advocates insist upon a totally "vegan" diet. This requires that the patient eat nothing from any animal source. Further, they require that all, (or sometimes 80%), of the food taken be fresh and raw. Other agencies allow some animal protein sources such as two servings of fish a week. There is good reasoning behind both of these options. Many people succeed with a less stringent plan.

I find that many people equate "alternative medicine" to the use of medicinal herbs. Herbs can be a very effective and sometimes essential part of a successful program. Many people have had dramatic recoveries from cancer by using herbs alone. Herbal products are allowed on the market if they do not make any medical claims, but are offered as the ubiquitous "dietary supplement".

It is up to the user to understand what benefits may be gotten from using the products, as the provider is not allowed to make any health claims. For instance, I recently spoke to the American office of the herbal cancer treatment product, Flor Essence. This is an enhanced version of Essiac, which has an impressive record of success in treating cancer. I said something about "cancer" and the person on the other end of the phone said; "We are not allowed to say that 'word'."

There are several devices and specific plans that are touted as effective cancer treatments. The ones that I know about and that I consider to be legitimate are included in this report.

There are many people and organizations that offer and promote a wide variety of alternative cancer treatments. They are, for the most part, un associated, independent, and often un aware of some others in the field. There is no central organizing structure such as exists for conventional medicine through the various associations and government agencies. For this reason, one may find disagreement and contrary opinions expressed among alternative providers. In my opinion, this does not mean that there is great confusion, but rather that there is much yet to be learned. However, many people are experiencing wonderful recoveries by following what we do know about successful alternative cancer treatments.

The question of quackery arises. A report given by the American Cancer Society several years ago, stated that there is very little quackery evidenced in alternative medicine. This should give considerable assurance to those who are in doubt. This report has since been revoked and the society has "returned to the fold" of organized effort against alternative medicine.

I have heard from many who declare that if a cancer cure is ever found, it will come from "scientific research". Personally, I doubt that this can happen. "Science", because of its funding sources and FDA restrictions on nutritional treatments, is locked into a program that excludes nutrition as a valid contender. Science is looking for a "magic bullet" that can be patented and will produce profit for the owner. So long as we consider cancer to be a symptom of a deficiency, which in my opinion is supported by overwhelming evidence, the cure must address the cause which can not be accessed by a chemical intervention. One popular expression is; "Cancer is not caused by the lack of chemotherapy"

It is perfectly legal to use alternative treatments. What is illegal is for your doctor to prescribe them. Your doctor is locked into a system that prevents him from offering anything which is not approved by the FDA. In this sense, your doctor is a victim too. He can use alternatives for himself and his family, but he can lose his license and go to jail if he offers these things to a patient.

I have talked with many conventional doctors on this subject. Some are very defensive. One oncologist screamed at me, shaking his fists at the ceiling. Another said; "Off the record, I hope that alternatives work for you".

If you are a victim of cancer, I hope that you will find courage and resources in these writings that have enabled many people to become cancer free.

Another staging system has recently been developed by the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC). This is a TNM system, similar to staging systems used for most other cancers. T stands for tumor (its size and how far it has spread to nearby organs), N stands for spread to lymph nodes and M is for metastasis (spread to distant organs). In TNM staging, information about the tumor, lymph nodes, and metastasis is combined in a process called stage grouping to assign a stage described by Roman numerals from I to IV. Minor differences exist between the AJCC TNM staging system and the Butchart staging system.
TNM Staging System
Stage I: Mesothelioma involves the right or left pleura. It may also have spread into the lung, pericardium, or diaphragm on the same side. It has not yet spread to the lymph nodes.
Stage II: Mesothelioma has spread from the pleura on one side to the nearby peribronchial and/or hilar lymph nodes next to the lung on the same side. It may also have spread into the lung, pericardium, or diaphragm on the same side.
Stage III: Mesothelioma has spread into the chest wall muscle, ribs, heart, esophagus, or other organs in the chest on the same side as the primary tumor, with or without spread to subcarinal and/or mediastinal lymph nodes on the same side as the main tumor. Subcarinal nodes are located at the point where the windpipe branches to the left and right lungs. Mediastinal lymph nodes are located in the space behind the chest bone in front of the heart. Mesotheliomas with the same extent of local spread as in stage II that have also spread to subcarinal and/or mediastinal lymph nodes on the same side are also included in stage III.
Stage IV: Mesothelioma has spread into the lymph nodes in the chest on the side opposite that of the primary tumor, or directly extends to the pleura or lung on the opposite side, or directly extends into the peritoneum, or directly extends into organs in the abdominal cavity or neck. Any mesothelioma with evidence of distant metastases (spread to other organs through the bloodstream) or spread to organs beyond the chest or abdomen is included in this stage.
Although the recently developed TNM classification is the most detailed and precise, the original Butchart staging system is still used most often to describe the spread of pleural mesotheliomas. Understanding these staging systems for mesothelioma is important both for estimating and better understanding prognosis, and also for assessing therapeutic options.
Prognostic Factors
Because pleural mesothelioma has been better studied than peritoneal mesothelioma we know more about factors associated with prognosis for pleural mesothelioma. Younger age at diagnosis, performance status (functional status) and absence of weight loss are associated with a more favorable prognosis.
Mesotheliomas are usually of three different cell types (histological analysis): 1) epithelial cell type - has the most favorable prognosis; 2) fibrosarcomatous cell type - carries the worst prognosis and 3) mixed cell type - has an intermediate prognosis.

Peritoneal mesothelioma:

Peritoneal mesothelioma involves the abdominal cavity, infiltrating the liver, spleen or the bowel. As with pleural mesothelioma pain is the most common presenting complaint. In addition, due to fluid accumulation in the abdominal cavity (ascites), the abdomen appears enlarged. The patients experience nausea, vomiting, swelling of their feet, fever and difficulty in moving their bowels.
The prognosis is poorer than for pleural mesothelioma with a median survival time of about 10 months from the onset of symptoms.
Benign Mesothelioma:
A rare form of mesothelioma is the cycstic mesothelioma of the peritoneum. Its prognosis is benign. Its occurrence has been described primarily in young women. However the diagnosis presents difficulties, requiring extensive electron miscroscopy and immunohistochemical studies.
Rare Sites:
Mesothelioma of the pericardium, is a very seldom seen cardiac cancer. The mass is usually detected at a late stage by echocardiography, the prognosis is very poor , with or without therapy. Mesothelioma of the ovaries and the scrotum have also been reported in the literature. The management differs based on the stage of the disease, the prognosis is also very poor. The etiology of the few cases of mesothelioma described in children remains unclear and is not believed to be asbestos-related, the therapy and prognosis differ on an individual basis.

Pleural mesothelioma spreads within the chest cavity, sometimes involving the lung. Metastases can occur in any organ, including the brain, and are much more common than previously thought.
The onset of mesothelioma is usually very slow, the most common presenting symptom is persistent pain localized in the chest. Sometimes the pain is accompanied by severe difficulty breathing, due to an accumulation of fluid in the pleural space known as pleural effusion. Cough, weight loss and fever are not uncommon. The most valuable single test to show the extent of the disease is a computed chest tomograph (CT-scan).
There are currently no serum markers available for the diagnosis of mesothelioma. The detection of elevated serum levels of hyaluronic acid may be useful in differentiating mesotheliomas from other tumors, or to follow the effect of treatment.
The median survival is about 17 months from the beginning of symptoms. The 3-year survival is 10% the 5-year survival is approximately 5% ( if 100 patients are diagnosed with mesothelioma at a specific point in time, that means that 10 patients will still be alive at the end of 3 years and 5 patients will only be alive at the end of 5 years).