Mesothelioma

Asbestos and mesothelioma are probably two things that most people, if they are aware of it at all, think of it as a problem for 70-year-old naval yard workers from Mare Island or Long Beach. As with many calamities, one woman in Minnesota found out that unfortunately, the reach of mesothelioma is much broader than [...]

Firefighters are highly admired for their selfless devotion to saving lives. They place their own lives at risk every time they enter a burning building. The dangers they face are many, from the threat of the flames themselves to the inhalation of smoke and toxic fumes and the risk of an engulfed building collapsing. But [...]

World Cancer Day was February 4, this year, and is an initiative of the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC). One focus this year is debunking myths surrounding cancer. The organization wants to improve general knowledge of cancer and dispel misconceptions. The UICC is working to highlight that cancers like mesothelioma are not merely a [...]

One of the ongoing difficulties with properly treating patients afflicted with cancer like mesothelioma is determining if a patient, in fact, has mesothelioma. This lung cancer presents many symptoms that resemble other diseases of the lung. A patient may develop a cough that doesn’t get better and doesn’t go away. They may have fluid show [...]

Early cancer detection is a very important strategy for effective treatment. The earlier a cancer is found, the greater the treatment options. Often with cancer that is discovered late, treatment options are limited and the cancer is so widespread that effectiveness of any treatment is diminished. This is true of mesothelioma, which is difficult to [...]

A report from Ireland discussing mesothelioma cancer in woman, points out the global reach of this disease. The most disturbing finding of the study from the National Cancer Registry, was that wives of men who worked in asbestos-using industries are at risk for developing mesothelioma. They found 90 percent of female mesothelioma victims were married. [...]

A study out of Switzerland looked the long-term survival of mesothelioma patients who received trimodal therapy and concluded the procedure had mixed results. The patients given trimodal therapy did significantly better in the short-term than those in the palliative care group of the study. However, the five-year survival rate for those with malignant mesothelioma was [...]

In 2010, Congress established September 26 as National Mesothelioma Awareness Day. The day was established to make the public aware of the disease and its deadly consequences. More awareness should result in an increased effort to find effective treatments and a cure. Thousands of people die every year from lung disease that can be traced [...]

In December 2010, Congress approved the Zadroga Act, which is designed to assist those who have become sick related to their work at the World Trade Center on 9/11. A $4.3 billion fund was established to assist the first responders who have since suffered debilitating illnesses. The problem with the legislation was that it did [...]