Mesothelioma symptoms are not visible in the early stages of disease and it prevents the detection of this killer disease in its earlier stage. By the time, the patient is able to feel the mesothelioma symptoms this disease is in its last stage and becomes almost incurable. Mesothelioma is a serious cancer of the lining of lungs and abdomen. Occupational or other exposure to asbestos is the reason for mesothelioma and other lung diseases.
Before we move on to understand mesothelioma symptoms, we should understand the types of mesothelioma and why the symptoms are not visible until the later stages. There are many types of mesothelioma diseases. However, the most common types are pleural mesothelioma and peritoneal mesothelioma. Asbestos particles, the major culprit behind mesothelioma can lie dormant in your body for nearly three to five decades before manifesting as severe mesothelioma symptoms.
Symptoms of peritoneal mesothelioma are abdominal swelling and pain, sick feeling, loss of appetite and losing around 10% of body weight without any dieting, constipation and diarrhea. Symptoms of pleural mesothelioma are shortness of breath, chest pain and persistent cough. The patients in both types of mesothelioma might witness fever, night sweat, and inexplicable weight loss. Many patients do not show any symptoms at all, which prevents the detection of disease at its early stage. However, the worst part is that mesothelioma is rather incurable in the last stage and the patient has survival chances fort not more than 12-24 months.
Because of lack of awareness about mesothelioma symptoms, the patients do not recognize them and confuse them with common diseases. If you have a history of occupational or other exposure to asbestos, you must consult your health care professional and explore the possibilities of mesothelioma symptoms. Health experts have predicted that mesothelioma could end up being the cause of half a million U.S. deaths. This is a serious health issue and requires immediate attention.