What Is Mesothelioma?

The first symptoms are chest pain, cough, and shortness of breath. Fever, sweating, or joint pain are also the main complaints. About half of the patients have a large amount of pleural effusion with severe shortness of breath. Those who do not have a large amount of pleural effusion often have severe chest pain and common weight loss. An ordinary chest X-ray shows pleural effusion, while the lungs are surrounded by tumor tissue. In advanced cases, pericardial exudate can cause heart shadow enlargement, soft tissue shadow, and rib damage. CT is most useful in patients with suspected malignant pleural mesothelioma. Cytological examination of the pleural fluid can also help with the diagnosis. In routine laboratory tests, some patients may have thrombocytosis and elevated serum carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA). For those who cannot be diagnosed by routine examination, thoracoscopy can be used for pleural biopsy. Generally, most patients can get a diagnosis.

Mesothelioma

There are two types of mesothelioma. 1. Pleural mesothelioma is a primary tumor of the pleura. There are localized (mostly benign) and diffuse (all malignant) types. Among them, diffuse malignant mesothelioma is one of the worst prognosis tumors in the chest. Most patients are between the ages of 40 and 70, with more men than women. 2. Peritoneal mesothelioma is a tumor that originates from peritoneal mesothelial cells. The clinical manifestations are not characteristic. Common symptoms and signs are: abdominal pain, ascites, bloating, and abdominal mass. Peritoneal mesothelioma accounts for about 20% of all mesothelioma cases and can occur at the age of 2-92 years, with an average age of 54 years, of which about 63% of cases are between 45-64 years, and children are rare.

Mesothelioma pleural mesothelioma

There is currently no effective cure for malignant pleural mesothelioma. In terms of treatment methods, there are palliative treatment, surgical treatment, chemotherapy and radiation treatment. Generally speaking, for patients with stage I tumors with relatively limited tumors, radical pleural pneumonectomy is recommended. For patients with stage , , and , radical surgery is meaningless, only palliative surgery is performed. In fact, most patients are above stage II by the time the disease is clearly diagnosed. Rapidly increasing pleural effusion often leads to severe breathing difficulties in patients, so palliative surgery is of great significance to improve the quality of life of these advanced patients.

Mesothelioma peritoneal mesothelioma

Mesothelioma Introduction

Peritoneal mesothelioma is a tumor that originates from peritoneal mesothelial cells. The clinical manifestations are not characteristic. Common symptoms and signs are: abdominal pain, ascites, bloating, and abdominal mass. Peritoneal mesothelioma accounts for about 20% of all mesothelioma cases and can occur at the age of 2 to 92 years, with an average age of 54 years, of which about 63% of cases are between 45 and 64 years old, and children are rare.

Clinical manifestations of mesothelioma

1. abdominal pain, bloating, ascites, abdominal mass; 2. anorexia, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation; 3. fatigue, fever, weight loss, anemia; 4. hypoglycemia, diffuse abdominal ossification; 5. combined with other parts Corresponding manifestations of mesothelioma such as peritoneal mesothelioma, metastasis to other organs and comorbidities.

Mesothelioma diagnosis basis

1. Patients with abdominal pain, bloating, ascites, and abdominal mass, especially with asbestos exposure history; 2. Imaging examination of the peritoneum with lamellar tumor signs and ascites; 3. Ascites cytology examination; 4. Peritoneal biopsy, laparoscopy and The diagnosis can be confirmed by laparotomy and taking tissue for pathological examination.

Peritoneal mesothelioma originates from the epithelium and mesothelial tissue of the peritoneum. Asbestos dust is a pathogenic substance, and some viruses may also cause mesothelioma. Pathology of peritoneal mesothelioma can be divided into three types: adenoma-like tumor, cystic mesothelioma, and malignant mesothelioma. The clinical manifestations of peritoneal mesothelioma are not specific. The positive rate of the relevant tests is not high and the specificity is not strong. The clinical diagnosis is very difficult. With the development of laparoscopy, ultrasound and CT-guided puncture biopsy technology, and the improvement of pathology, immunohistochemistry and electron microscopy diagnosis, more and more cases get a clear pathological diagnosis before or during surgery. Peritoneal mesothelioma should be mainly distinguished from tuberculous peritonitis, intra-abdominal metastatic cancer, and other tumors that originate in the omentum of the peritoneum.