Mesothelioma or Lung Cancer? Pleural Fluid May Tell
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Mesothelioma or Lung Cancer? Pleural Fluid May Tell

ByAlex Strauss

One of the biggest challenges in treating malignant pleural mesothelioma is making a definitive diagnosis. Mesothelioma is a cancer that occurs in the membranous tissue encasing the lungs and other organs. It is almost always caused by exposure to asbestos. Although mesothelioma is not technically a lung cancer, many of its most common symptoms, such as shortness of breath and coughing, are similar to lung cancer and other lung diseases. Like mesothelioma, many of these diseases cause a buildup of fluid around the lungs known as pleural effusion.  But there are subtle differences in the biochemical composition of that fluid from one disease to the next. A team of medical researchers in Japan is testing a new method for detecting and using…

GM Mesothelioma Claims May Rise
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GM Mesothelioma Claims May Rise

ByAlex Strauss

Creditors of the bankrupt remains of General Motors have won the right to estimate just how much the company could have to pay out to mesothelioma victims in the coming years. Like many car manufacturers, GM used asbestos as part of the brake linings in its vehicles for years.  This encapsulated asbestos poses a serious health hazard, including the potential for malignant mesothelioma, to anyone who disturbs it by working on those brakes.  Because brake work can release deadly asbestos dust into the air where it can be easily inhaled, auto mechanics are at risk for asbestos-related diseases, including not only mesothelioma, but also asbestosis and lung cancer. Because of this danger, GM is no stranger to asbestos-related lawsuits and mesothelioma claims. …

Mesothelioma Patients Stigmatized Study Says
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Mesothelioma Patients Stigmatized Study Says

ByAlex Strauss

Patients with mesothelioma, an aggressive form of cancer caused by exposure to asbestos, may bear the brunt of public prejudice against lung cancer, according to a new study. Although mesothelioma is a rare cancer, attacking just 2,000 to 3,000 Americans each year, the most common form, which occurs in the linings around the lungs, is classified as lung cancer.  According to the American Cancer Society, lung cancers of all kinds are the most prevalent cancer killer worldwide, claiming more lives than breast, prostate and colon cancers combined.  Asbestos exposure has also been shown to cause lung cancers other than mesothelioma, and may account for many more deaths. But a new study commissioned by the Global Lung Cancer Coalition (GLCC) says, despite…

Asbestos Workers Face Increased Risk of Cancer Death
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Asbestos Workers Face Increased Risk of Cancer Death

ByAlex Strauss

Workers who have been exposed to asbestos on the job are more likely to die from lung cancers,mesothelioma, and asbestosis, as well as from stomach cancer and stroke, according to one of the longest-running studies of British asbestos workers, published in Occupational and Environmental Medicine. On the positive side, more stringent asbestos regulations appear to be reducing the risk of asbestos-related diseases among younger workers. Since the early part of the 20th century, asbestos-related diseases have been the leading cause of job-related deaths in Great Britain, and the number of deaths has been on the rise. Although Britain has enacted stricter laws governing the use of industrial asbestos, exposed workers will likely continue to develop deadly cancers in the years…

Mesothelioma and Early Lung Cancer Identified by Screening
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Mesothelioma and Early Lung Cancer Identified by Screening

ByAlex Strauss

Using computed tomography scans to screen former asbestos workers can detect both early and late-stage lung cancer and late-stage mesothelioma, according to a study in the May Journal of Thoracic Oncology. However, it’s still not clear whether screening for these cancers might improve patients’ prognoses. Exposure to asbestos fibers is a known risk factor for lung cancer and the cause of mesothelioma. Although asbestos is still not completely banned in the U.S., it was phased out of American industry to a large degree beginning in the 1970s.  However because asbestos-related diseases can take 20 to 40 years to emerge after people have been exposed, former asbestos workers and those exposed to products containing this carcinogen continue to be diagnosed with asbestos…