Mesothelioma life expectancy

Mesothelioma is a cancer most notably caused by asbestos exposure. The life expectancy of a mesothelioma patient may be impacted by a number of aspects, including latency period of symptoms, age at diagnosis, type of diagnosis and certain prognosis factors such as gender, histology and cigarette smoking.

Factors Affecting PleuralMesothelioma life expectancy:
There are several factors that can affect the life expectancy of a pleural mesothelioma patient, including:

* Latency Period – Though many cancers exhibit symptoms relatively quickly, the signs of pleural mesothelioma cancer do not surface until later stages of cancer development and this may be 20 to 50 years after initial exposure to asbestos. Because of the latency of symptoms, the cancer is typically diagnosed during the advanced stages. Those with a history of asbestos exposure should seek annual asbestos screenings to check for signs of disease.
* Stage at Diagnosis – Life expectancy is greatly affected by the stage of the cancer at diagnosis. A prognosis can be poor if the cancer is detected in a late stage of development and when treatment options are fewer and less effective. If the cancer is caught earlier, a patient’s prognosis may improve since more treatment options will be available.
* Age at Diagnosis – A person’s age at diagnosis can affect prognosis because older patients often experience difficulty when receiving an aggressive treatment approach that tries to cure the cancer. The average age of a mesothelioma patient is 60 and more than 75 percent of mesothelioma cases are diagnosed in men age 55 or older.
* Feasible Treatment Options – Depending on the health of the patient and their stage at diagnosis, a pleural mesothelioma patient may be able to withstand aggressive treatments that attempt to cure the disease or they may only be able to handle palliative treatment options (which aim to alleviate symptoms and improve quality of life rather than cure the cancer). In some cases, taking a more aggressive treatment approach can prolong life expectancy, but this varies from patient to patient.
* Smoking and General Health – Pleural mesothelioma patients who refrained from smoking and lived a healthy lifestyle prior to their diagnosis tend to have a better prognosis. Patients who smoked or had poor health before diagnosis often exhibit compromised lungs or immune systems, and this can have a negative affect on life expectancy http://mr-lawyers.blogspot.com/.

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