Mesothelioma Research 1
According to Science Daily, an online resource for latest research news, mesothelioma patients who got treated by a combination of 2 drugs had an improved chance of surviving. Their survival rate increased by a minimum of 3 months. The two drugs used for the treatment were PEMETREXED and CISPLATIN. The clinical trials were done on 448 mesotheliomic patients.
About 80% of the mesotheliomic patients were men with an average age of 61 years. Some patients received only cisplatin whereas some patients received a combination of pemetrexed, cisplatin, vitamin supplements, folic acid and B12. Not only did their life span increase by three months but also the patients felt less tired, had improved appetite, experienced less pain and had smaller coughing spells. The clinical trial and research was done at the Clatterbridge Center for Oncology in England.
Mesothelioma Research 2
A research published in The New England Journal of Medicine says that researchers in New York University School of Medicine and Wayne State University have discovered a molecular particle that shows the beginnings of pleural mesothelioma. The blood levels of a protein called OSTEOPONTIN rises significantly in patients with early stages of pleural mesothelioma.
This is a breakthrough discovery as it may lead to the development of a blood diagnostic test which can detect the disease pleural mesothelioma in its earliest stages. Currently the patient has to wait for mesothelioma to become a full blown case before it is properly diagnosed. Although it is incurable, the detection of pleural mesothelioma in its earliest stages, will lead to swifter treatment options with the patient having a longer survival rate and a reduced pain free life.
Mesothelioma Research 3
A study conducted by a team of researchers at University of Cincinnati have found that all those workers who used were employed at a Ohio manufacturing plant in Marysville and were exposed to vermiculite ore had abnormally high rates of chest wall lining disfigurement.
Vermiculite ore is known to contain asbestos fibers and exposure to it means that previous workers have a high chance of developing asbestosis, lung diseases and mesothelioma. Because of mesothelioma’s long latency period, researchers will not know about the development of mesothelioma in these people till the next 30-50 years.
Sunday, 10 May 2009
Asbestos Exposure
Asbestos Exposure
Asbestos fibers are not altered due to heat or chemicals and do not conduct electricity. That is why asbestos has been widely used in many industries. However, exposure to Asbestos has an adverse effect on the lungs can can cause Mesothelioma.
Asbestos fibers cannot move through soil, they are generally transferred through air. As they do not dissolve in water or get broken down to other compounds they remain unchanged over several decades and thus, can adversely effect the human body once exposure to the fibers has taken place
Asbestos Fiber
Asbestos fibers are used as a binder and are popular in the automobile, refridgeration industry and work as a fire retardant. Along with its numerous advantages, asbestos cause anything from discomfort to death.
Asbestos Fiber
Asbestos is a compound composed of a variety of six fibrous minerals namely:
-amosite
-crocidolite
-chrysotile
-tremolite
-anthophyllite
-actinolite
Due to its flexibility and heat resistence qualities Asbestos can be used in the construction and automobile industry for making products similar to ceiling and floor tiles and asbestos cement products etc.
Asbestos – Mesothelioma Cancer originator
Asbestos is a carcinogenic substance that causes Mesothelioma, a rare form of cancer. Before the mid 1970's there were no laws that regulated the use of Asbestos in the workplace and as a result there were seen to be a rising number of cases of the various forms of mesothelioma cancer in the US. That is why in the 1980's a law was passed that imposed limits on the use of Asbestos in the industries and created a workers fair compensation law that allowed workers having been exposed to Asbestos to demand compensation through law if they fell ill.
Mesothelioma Cases on the Rise in the UK
The Health Safety Executive or HSE as it is popularly known has published the latest statistics for asbestos induced mesothelioma deaths. And the statistics are not looking good for UK residents. Mesothelioma is a rare type of cancer that affects those workers and people who have directly or indirectly inhaled asbestos. A painful disease with devastating long terms effects, mesothelioma is gaining wide coverage due to awareness created in the print and electronic media.
According to the HSE statistics the number of deaths has increased to 1,969 victims in the year 2004 from 153 people that died due to mesothelioma in the year 1969. Within the next 4-8 years it is expected that the deaths will escalate to an estimated 2,450 per year. An alarmingly high increase that should ring alarm bells in the government corridors and medical boards.
The statistical information with regards to mesothelioma and asbestos related deaths are thoroughly verified and checked by HSE using a comprehensive system of records, death certificates and cross-checking cancer registrations. This information is also up on the internet for general public reading and can be easily accessed and downloaded from the HSE website.
According to HSE statistical report, the workers from the following businesses are most vulnerable to asbestos induced cancers. All these industries made extensive use of asbestos fibers before strict rules and regulations were enforced to limit asbestos.
Construction business
Energy business
Water supply business
Manufacturing business
Shipbuilding business
Railway engineering business
You can also find the geographical distribution of mesothelioma deaths in the HSE report, which gives a breakdown of statistics in areas with such high incidence rate of mesothelioma deaths. The reason for such high mesothelioma rates in these locations is due to a large presence of ports, shipyards and dockyards. In Scotland these are some of the geographical locations with high mesothelioma deaths: West Dunbartonshire, East Dunbartonshire, Fife, Glasgow City, Inverclyde and Renfrewshire.
In the North East parts of Great Britain mesothelioma mortalities are usually in:
Hartlepool
Middlesbrough
Redcar
Cleveland
Stockton on Tees
All LAs in Tyne and Wear Metropolitan County
Blythe Valley in Northumberland
In the South East divisions of Great Britain mesothelioma mortalities are usually in:
The UAs of Isle of White
Medway
Portsmouth
Southampton
The LAs of Farehma
Gosport
Havant
New Forest in Hampshire
You can find other geographical locations for increasing mesothelioma mortalities in the detailed and updated HSE report. A major consequence of mesothelioma deaths has been a sharp rise in the number of lawsuits filed by victims and their families to get monetary compensation. Another consequence has been that all the industries are now pumping money in research to find suitable replacements for asbestos fibers. What will this eventually lead to is something to watch out for in the coming years.
According to the HSE statistics the number of deaths has increased to 1,969 victims in the year 2004 from 153 people that died due to mesothelioma in the year 1969. Within the next 4-8 years it is expected that the deaths will escalate to an estimated 2,450 per year. An alarmingly high increase that should ring alarm bells in the government corridors and medical boards.
The statistical information with regards to mesothelioma and asbestos related deaths are thoroughly verified and checked by HSE using a comprehensive system of records, death certificates and cross-checking cancer registrations. This information is also up on the internet for general public reading and can be easily accessed and downloaded from the HSE website.
According to HSE statistical report, the workers from the following businesses are most vulnerable to asbestos induced cancers. All these industries made extensive use of asbestos fibers before strict rules and regulations were enforced to limit asbestos.
Construction business
Energy business
Water supply business
Manufacturing business
Shipbuilding business
Railway engineering business
You can also find the geographical distribution of mesothelioma deaths in the HSE report, which gives a breakdown of statistics in areas with such high incidence rate of mesothelioma deaths. The reason for such high mesothelioma rates in these locations is due to a large presence of ports, shipyards and dockyards. In Scotland these are some of the geographical locations with high mesothelioma deaths: West Dunbartonshire, East Dunbartonshire, Fife, Glasgow City, Inverclyde and Renfrewshire.
In the North East parts of Great Britain mesothelioma mortalities are usually in:
Hartlepool
Middlesbrough
Redcar
Cleveland
Stockton on Tees
All LAs in Tyne and Wear Metropolitan County
Blythe Valley in Northumberland
In the South East divisions of Great Britain mesothelioma mortalities are usually in:
The UAs of Isle of White
Medway
Portsmouth
Southampton
The LAs of Farehma
Gosport
Havant
New Forest in Hampshire
You can find other geographical locations for increasing mesothelioma mortalities in the detailed and updated HSE report. A major consequence of mesothelioma deaths has been a sharp rise in the number of lawsuits filed by victims and their families to get monetary compensation. Another consequence has been that all the industries are now pumping money in research to find suitable replacements for asbestos fibers. What will this eventually lead to is something to watch out for in the coming years.
UK’s youngest meso victim passes away
A young woman believed to be Britain’s youngest mesothelioma patient, at age 28, passed away last week, just two years after her diagnosis, according to a story in the Daily Mail. Leigh Carlisle, who grew up in Manchester, had peritoneal mesothelioma, affecting the lining of the abdomen.
Because of its long latency period – from 20 up to 50 years – mesothelioma usually occurs in older people, age 50 and older. For that reason, Carlisle’s mesothelioma eluded diagnosis early on, with doctors mistaking her symptoms for ailments such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), pelvic infection and endometriosis. Doctors were stunned when they diagnosed peritoneal mesothelioma.
Because of her young age, researchers believe Carlisle may have come in contact with asbestos – the only known cause of mesothelioma – in her school, or possibly from a factory yard near her childhood home, which she used as a shortcut on her way to school each day. Asbestos sheets were cut at the yard.
According to the report, about 2,000 people in Britain die from mesothelioma each year, a figure that has doubled since 1992. The paper reports that 90,000 people in the UK will die from the disease, and another 90,000 from other asbestos-related lung diseases.
Additionally, the report says about 200 school workers have died or are suffering from illnesses related to asbestos exposure in schools in Britain, where it is estimated that about 13,000 schools still contain asbestos.
Following her diagnosis, Carlisle worked for mesothelioma and asbestos awareness. Her family requests that donations in her memory be made to the Oldham Cancer Support Centre in Failsworth:
Oldham Cancer Support Centre
Because of its long latency period – from 20 up to 50 years – mesothelioma usually occurs in older people, age 50 and older. For that reason, Carlisle’s mesothelioma eluded diagnosis early on, with doctors mistaking her symptoms for ailments such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), pelvic infection and endometriosis. Doctors were stunned when they diagnosed peritoneal mesothelioma.
Because of her young age, researchers believe Carlisle may have come in contact with asbestos – the only known cause of mesothelioma – in her school, or possibly from a factory yard near her childhood home, which she used as a shortcut on her way to school each day. Asbestos sheets were cut at the yard.
According to the report, about 2,000 people in Britain die from mesothelioma each year, a figure that has doubled since 1992. The paper reports that 90,000 people in the UK will die from the disease, and another 90,000 from other asbestos-related lung diseases.
Additionally, the report says about 200 school workers have died or are suffering from illnesses related to asbestos exposure in schools in Britain, where it is estimated that about 13,000 schools still contain asbestos.
Following her diagnosis, Carlisle worked for mesothelioma and asbestos awareness. Her family requests that donations in her memory be made to the Oldham Cancer Support Centre in Failsworth:
Oldham Cancer Support Centre
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