cancer mesothelioma

Mesothelioma Cancer Risk Factors | Symptoms | Legal Options | Mesothelioma Lawyers

Mesothelioma Causes & Diagnosis

Mesothelioma is a rare type of cancer that develops in the mesothelial cells that lines many organs and body cavities. The mesothelium (composed of mesothelial cells) is the membrane that lines three of the body's cavities, and depending on what cavity it lines it is given a specific name: the thoracic cavity (pleura), abdominal cavity (peritoneum), and the heart sac (pericardium).

Mesothelioma is an aggressive cancer of the mesothelium, in which cells of the mesothelium become abnormal and divide uncontrollably and without order. They can invade and damage nearby tissues and organs. Most cases of mesothelioma begin in the thoracic cavity (pleura) or the abdominal cavity (peritoneum).

Approximately 2,000 to 3,000 cases of mesothelioma are diagnosed each year in the United States, comprising around 3 percent of all cancer diagnoses. This cancer occurs about four times more frequently in men than in women. All forms of mesothelioma, except for benign mesothelioma, are invariably fatal. The prognosis for mesothelioma is almost always poor and most studies report a median survival of less than one year, but the prognosis really depends on how early the cancer is diagnosed and how aggressively it is treated.