Mesothelioma Types:

Types of mesothelioma:

There are three kinds or forms of mesothelioma which is related to asbestos malignant mesothelioma. They are:

a) Pleural Mesothelioma, which affects the lining of the lungs or the chest cavity
b) Peritoneal Mesothelioma, which attacks the membrane surrounding the abdominal cavity or peritoneum
c) Pericardial Mesothelioma, which attacks around the lining of the heart.

a) Pleural Mesothelioma:

When the cancer hits the lining of the lungs ot the chest cavity it is often referred to as pleural mesothelioma. More than 3/4th of all diagnosed mesothelioma affect the pleura. When the person is exposed or inhales the asbestos dusts, these fibers travel to the lungs and become embedded in the lung lining, outside of the lungs and inside the ribs. Then there occurs inflammation and then it slowly becomes tumors as cancer cells in the membrane.

These cells grow faster and affect the entire lungs and leads to the advanced stages of mesothelioma. The symptoms often here are :

• Shortness of breath
• Painful breathing (pleurisy)
• Dry cough and Coughing up blood
• Unusual lumps of tissue under the skin on the chest or abdomen
• Weight loss
• Pain under the rib cage, in the lower back, or at the side of the chest
• Pain or swelling in the abdomen and difficulty swallowing.

These are some of the general symptoms of mesothelioma in pleura.

b) Peritoneal Mesothelioma: 

It is a rare cancer of mesothelioma and it is not seen as popular as pleural mesothelioma. Peritoneal mesothelioma is a cancer affecting the abdominal lining.
Cells in these linings secrete a fluid which allows organs to move against one another. The intestines move food through the body. The cells of the mesothelium are designed to create fluid, but the cancer can cause them to overproduce, creating a build up of excess fluid in the abdominal cavity.
Because pleural mesothelioma is more common and often spreads to the peritoneal cavity, it is important to determine if pleural mesothelioma is the primary cancer.

c) Pericardial Mesothelioma:

This type of mesothelioma cancer affects the lining or sac that holds our heart. This type is very rare and about 5 - 10 % are affected by this type of mesothelioma. As the cancer grows, the membrane wall i.e., the sac holds the heart thickens and built up the fluid between the membrance layers and impairs cardiac function. This results in the final stage.