Mesothelioma and Asbestosis

Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral, and is virtually ubiquitous in the country. Because of its durable property that makes it naturally resistant to heat, fire, water, electricity, and other certain types of chemicals, it has been favored by many builders and constructors as component of durable construction materials. However, its chemical properties have been determined to cause certain diseases, which some of it have been labelled as causes of high numbers of death. Two of the diseases linked with asbestos are mesothelioma and asbestosis, but what are they and how are they different from one another?

Mesothelioma

Mesothelioma is a rare type of cancer caused by transformed cell that originated from the mesothelium (the protective lining that covers many internal organ of the body). The development of mesothelioma has been linked to asbestos exposure, however direct or indirect. It can attack in different anatomical sites of the body, such as the lungs, the abdomen, or the surrounding area of the heart.




However, among these three, the most common is the area near the lungs, as people who get exposed to asbestos fibers are at higher risk of inhaling than digesting the fibers. Researches have shown that mesothelioma develops, or at least diagnosed, twenty to fifty years after a person has been exposed to asbestos.

Signs and symptoms of the disease may vary depending in the anatomical area where mesothelioma develops, but they generally include difficulty of breathing, sudden weight loss, weakness, and pain around the area of mesothelioma development. Aside from asbestos, other known risk factors of mesothelioma include erionite, zeolite, simian virus 40, radiation, and carbon nanotubes among others.

Asbestosis

Unlike mesothelioma, asbestosis is not cancerous. The process of its development is not yet clear, but according to past researches, scientists are able to speculate that asbestos fibers in the lungs cause irritation and inflammation. The body, then, tries to counter the effect of foreign matter, but causes more inflammation and cell damage. The specific kind of asbestos a person gets exposed to does not matter to the development of asbestosis.

Unlike mesothelioma, asbestosis often exists without any symptoms, and only X-ray or CT scans can reveal it as these tests can show the thickening and scarring of lung tissues. However, certain signs like shortness of breath or coughing are manifested, but are often attributed to minor or less serious diseases. Just like mesothelioma, asbestosis is a progressive diseases, meaning, it can continue to develop despite the asbestos exposure has ended, but unlike mesothelioma, asbestosis is only known to affect the lungs. To date, there is no known cure for asbestosis, and people who suffer this condition are at high risk of developing lung cancer or mesothelioma.