Mesothelioma affects one person in about a million typically, and is a type of cancer which is not common. It is usually caused by asbestos exposure.

While smoking does not itself cause the disease, when combined with asbestos exposure it has been shown to increase the risk of this disease being contracted in the lung area. Mesothelioma is sometimes called “asbestos poisoning” because that is how it is caused. The exposure can be either direct exposure to asbestos dust, or indirect such as when washing clothes of a person who works with this chemical.

The symptoms of this disease are many and varied. They might include breathing difficulties due to build-up of fluid in the lungs, as well as fever, loss of weight and pain in the chest, abdomen or even head and neck. The symptoms might not appear for many decades after the exposure to asbestos. Diagnosis is sometimes supported by chest X-ray or CT scan, and can be confirmed by examination of a small piece of the affected tissue (called a biopsy).

Recovery from the disease is not common, and median survival times is about 9 months from presentation (with the 5-year survival rate being about 10%), although a few people do survive for more than 20 years after having the disease. Some patients have survived more than 5 years after having radical surgery plus chemo and radiation therapy, but radiation therapy alone has proved ineffective.

Most people who get the disease are dead within 18 months from knowing they have it. This is due to the challenges in having a clear diagnosis rather than the progression rate of the disease. Treatment for the disease can sometimes total 800,000 dollars.

Legal action about the disease started in 1929 and more than five hundred thousand claims have been filed so far. The highest mortality rate from the disease is in the ship-building and repairing industries, because of the extensive use of asbestos on ships. There are specialist attorneys and lawyers who handle legal action. The amounts received from a claim can be considerable.

The prognosis for the disease is typically not good, even given the currently available treatments.

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