Where Can Mesothelioma Form in the Body?

Research published just last month by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) highlighted how an estimated 2,803 mesothelioma patients lose their lives to this rare but deadly form of cancer every year in the U.S.

Given how this cancer is so rare in our country, few people understand a lot about it, including what body parts it affects. And, if someone does know anything about this aggressive disease, most times, all they are aware of is that it can affect one’s lungs.

Mesothelioma can affect other parts, too, though. Continue reading, where we’ll discuss where mesothelioma can form in the body.

Understanding Where Mesothelioma Develops

There are four known types of aggressive asbestos-related disease that exist, and the names of those indicate which body part it affects as follows:

• Peritoneal Mesothelioma: This mesothelioma adversely impacts a person’s abdomen.
• Pleural Mesothelioma: Perhaps the most common version of this disease, this mesothelioma involves the lungs.
• Testicular Mesothelioma: As its name suggests, this variety of mesothelioma is gender-specific only affecting males. It impacts a portion of their reproductive system, their testicles.
• Pericardial Mesothelioma: This cancer impacts a person’s cardiovascular system and, more specifically, their heart.

It’s important to note that, in the case of each of the mesothelioma variants described above, each type specifically affects the tissue surrounding the organ or body part mentioned.

Symptoms Patients Suffering From These Different Types of Mesothelioma Experience

Now that you’re clear on the primary body parts affected by this cancer, let’s explore some of the common signs patients notice that may indicate that they’re unwell. Since they vary by the variant of mesothelioma, a patient may be suffering from, we’ve taken time to break those symptoms into categories below.

Peritoneal Mesothelioma

Patients who are ultimately diagnosed with this type of mesothelioma affecting the abdomen often report having some of the following initial symptoms of the disease, many of which could easily be confused with someone experiencing gastrointestinal distress:

• Bloating (swelling)
• Overall discomfort in the abdominal region
• Nausea

Pleural Mesothelioma

Since this cancer affects the lining around a person’s lungs, they traditionally experience symptoms often associated with respiratory illnesses like:

• Chest pain
• Labored breathing
• Painful coughing

It’s also not uncommon for patients with advanced-stage pleural mesothelioma to feel lumps beneath the skin in the bronchial region of their chest. Difficulty swallowing may be another indicator that a patient has a malignant version of this aggressive cancer.

Testicular Mesothelioma

Men who are ultimately diagnosed with testicular mesothelioma are often able to identify some of the early signs of the disease as:

• Lumps or a solid mass in their scrotum sack
• Discomfort or pain along the abdominal, scrotal, or groin region
• The development of a fluid-filled mass in the sperm ducts, called a spermatocele

It’s not unheard of that the different issues described above cause an enlargement of the affected areas.

Pericardial Mesothelioma

Since this variety of mesothelioma affects the heart, it’s commonplace for affected patients to experience:

• An irregular heartbeat
• Heart palpitations
• A heart murmur
• Fluid retention around the heart

More generalized symptoms that patients suffering from any of the mesotheliomas listed above may additionally experience include fatigue, difficulty sleeping due to night sweats, fatigue, and fever.

If, through your review of these symptoms and in consulting with your doctor, you’ve determined that you are suffering from mesothelioma, know that there is help that those both in the healthcare and legal communities can offer you.

Where To Turn If You’re Suffering From Mesothelioma

You have worked hard all your life and look forward to this stage in your life when perhaps your kids are grown, and you can retire, sit back, relax, and enjoy the fruits of your labor. Now, you’re in a situation where you’ve found out that you’re suffering from an increasingly debilitating disease like this, and you’re faced with losing all your savings to medical bills instead of enjoyment.

This is when you’ll want to reach out to us at Schweickert Ganassin Krzak Rundio, LLP to discuss how you might have contracted this cancer so we can discuss with you your options for securing a settlement for the financial losses you’re bound to have now or in the future.

Meeting with a Chicago mesothelioma attorney from our office to discuss your options is free, so let’s have a chat now.