Asbestos Related Lung Cancer
For most of the last century, asbestos was known as the miracle mineral. It was used extensively in building for insulation, and woven into nearly every type of item that could be manufactured. As early as 1897, there were reports that asbestos could cause serious lung damage in those that were exposed to it, but those reports were either intentionally suppressed or ignored. By 1931, though, the British government had started to take action to address the concerns about lung cancer in those who worked with asbestos. By the early 1970s, the United States government had followed suit and begun to formulate safety rules for handling asbestos. By that time, it was about fifty years too late for thousands upon thousands who had been exposed to asbestos in the workplace, the home and the environment.
The effects of exposure to asbestos in the environment and the workplace include lung scarring, pleural plaques, asbestosis, lung cancer and a particularly virulent, aggressive cancer known as mesothelioma. Mesothelioma is related almost exclusively to exposure to asbestos. It is cancer of the pleura - the lining around the lungs rather than in the lungs themselves. Even a very short term exposure decades ago may result in mesothelioma. Smoking increases the risk of developing mesothelioma dramatically. A smoker who was exposed to asbestos has a 50 to 90 times greater chance of developing lung cancer, including mesothelioma than a non-smoker. By contrast, a non-smoker exposed to asbestos has a five times greater chance of developing lung cancer.
Mesothelioma and other asbestos related lung cancers are diagnosed through a combination of medical history, imaging technologies like x-rays, MRIs and CAT scans, and biopsy and tissue sampling. Those who know that they were exposed to asbestos in the workplace or environment should have regular screenings for lung abnormalities, as the incubation period between exposure and development of lung cancer can be as long as 50 years.
As with any lung cancer, early diagnosis is the best indicator of survival. The generally accepted statistics for those who are diagnosed with asbestos related lung cancer or mesothelioma are grim. In some cases, a patient diagnosed with mesothelioma may be told that his life expectancy is 8-12 weeks, but there are many mitigating factors that may affect that. Patients in some clinical trials that use a multi-treatment approach to treating mesothelioma have approached a 40% five year survival rate - nearly that of those diagnosed with other types of lung cancer.
Mesothelioma seems to respond best to aggressive treatment that combines surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Because mesothelioma is so often diagnosed in the later stages, surgery is seldom an option, but there are some promising new advances in chemotherapy to treat asbestos related lung cancers.
In February of 2004, the FDA approved the first drug specifically to treat mesothelioma, Alimta manufactured by Eli Lilly. Clinical trials with Alimta showed that using Alimta in combination with another drug commonly used to treat lung cancers, cisplatin, increased the life expectancy of patients diagnosed with mesothelioma. In a time where new advances are happening nearly on a weekly basis, even a few months of extended life can offer hope for a cure.
Lung Cancer - Overview
Lung Cancer is a type of cancer that forms in tissues of the lung, usually in the cells lining air passages. Many lung cancers begin in the bronchi though others can start in other parts of the lungs. Lung cancer also has a tendency to form in the glands below the bronchi.
Lung Cancer - Probabilities
Lung cancer causes up to 30% of all cancer related deaths, and it is the 2nd leading cause of death among both men and women in western society. 85% of all lung cancers are caused by a person's smoking habit or just by breathing in the second-hand smoke of others.
Lung Cancer - Screening
At this moment in time, there is no particularly useful single test that can be considered 100% reliable for the early detection of lung cancer. Unfortunately unless someone is undergoing a health screen for something completely unrelated, lung cancer is very often only discovered in the later stages of the disease when it is often too late to do anything but offer palliative treatment.
Lung Cancer - Symptoms
The most common indicators and symptoms of lung cancer include the following: Fatigue Shortness of breath and wheezing (dyspnoea) A cough that doesn't go away and gets worse over time Repeated problems with pneumonia or bronchitis Constant chest pain Coughing up blood (bloody sputum) (haemoptysis) Swelling of the neck and face Fever Loss of appetite and Weight loss (anorexia) Hoarse voice
Lung Cancer Treatment Options - Radiation
In many cases of lung cancer, surgery is not an option. This may be because of the advanced stage of the cancer, the location of the tumor or tumors, or because of the overall general health of the patient. In those cases, the oncologist may suggest radiation therapy to treat lung cancer. Even if surgery is an option, the doctor may suggest irradiation either before therapy to shrink the tumor or after surgery to destroy any remaining cancer cells.
Lung Cancer - Trends by Ethnicity, Sex and Race
In the USA and many other western countries, lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death. Lung cancer has been found to be the leading cancer killer among Caucasians, African-Americans, Asians and Hispanic males.