Dallas, TX: Confusion prevails when diseases occurring from exposure to asbestos are discussed. The most common form of the exposure to asbestos are the asbestos lung disease (asbestosis or respiratory issues that arise due to exposure to asbestos and the mesothelioma cancers.
Asbestosis: its occurrence and its follow-up: Asbestosis is a chronic disease, caused by continuous inhalation of the asbestos fibers, but, asbestosis, unlike mesothelioma, is not cancerous.
Once the fiber is inhaled, it causes irritation, resulting in inflammation .of the lungs. In the advance stage, the scarring of the lungs occurs. The lungs then start shrinking, become stiff and honey-combed. In this stage breathing becomes very difficult.
The symptoms of asbestosis include shortness of breath, decrease in the routine physical activities, constant cough and chest pain.
The treatment of asbestosis is based on the opening of the air tract and the blood vessels. Medication through chemotherapy, helps in expanding the blood vessels of the lungs, and the narrow vessels that surround the organ
The mesothelioma cancer; its occurrence, and its follow-up. The mesothelioma cancer is uncommon. There are three main types of this disease.
a) The pleural type. The onset of the disease is on the mesothelium lining of the pleural cavity. ( i.e. the chest cavity)
b) The peritoneal type: The onset of the disease is on the mesothelium lining of the peritoneal ( i.e the abdominal) cavity
c) The pericardial type: The onset of the disease in on the mesothelium lining of the pericardial. ( i.e the heart) cavity.
The infection onset starts as soon as the asbestos fibers are inhaled, but then these fibers rests inside the human body for a long period before they show their affect which usually spans from 20 to 40 years.
The cells of the mesothelium of a particular organ get disturbed. These cells now become abnormal and form tumors, may remain benign or malignant, invading the neighboring tissues of the organs.
The symptoms of mesothelioma are similar to asbestosis, and the treatment is based on the killing the cancerous cells and tumors. Through surgery, the removal of the tumors or the organs takes place. Radiation and chemotherapy, and other allied therapies., are alsomade use of.
Comparison between the asbestosis and the mesothelioma cancers.
Asbestosis is very similar to mesothelioma cancer. The cause of both the diseases are due to the exposure to asbestos. The symptoms also match, and often the treatment is also the same.
Asbestosis is a breathing disorder of the respiratory tract and the lungs. It creates irritation, inflammation and shrinkage of the lungs
Whereas in the mesothelioma, cancer, the attack is on the mesothelium lining of the pleural, peritoneal, or the pericardial cavities. The cancerous cells and the tumors spread to the surrounding areas. The prognosis, after diagnosis is of a span, on an average, of one to two years. In both the cases, the disease proves fatal.
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