Symptoms Of Mesothelioma

Initially, symptoms of mesothelioma are not specific, which always lags behind the diagnosis. In fact, a patient can spend years with the disease before experiencing abnormalities that explain a health problem. In addition, the symptoms may differ depending on the type of mesothelioma.   

Early symptoms of pleural mesothelioma can be neglected. As the mesothelioma progresses, however, pleural effusion (accumulation of fluid between the two pleural layers that line the lungs and chest cavity ) occurs; medical attention becomes necessary. This effusion can lead to the development of breathlessness, chest pain, cough, hoarseness, and sometimes difficulty in swallowing. In most patients, these indicators are not serious enough to require the patient to seek medical help.  

In pericardial mesothelioma, the patient may complain of fatigue, fever, night sweats, chest pain, palpitations or irregular heartbeat, and difficulty breathing even at rest (dyspnea). Unfortunately, most of the times, these symptoms occur a few months before diagnosis after the tumor is already advanced. The most common symptoms associated with peritoneal mesothelioma include, nausea or vomiting, intestinal obstruction, swelling of the abdomen (ascites), weight loss and abdominal pain and swelling.  

However, since these symptoms may be caused by dozens of other medical conditions, no doctor can declare you have mesothelioma without performing tests specific to the disease. Although a chest x-ray can reveal effusion and thickening of the pleura, other diagnostic procedures such as CT scan, PET scan, MRI scan and fluid and tissue tests (biopsies) are necessary (see diagnosis for more details ) to confirm accurately a mesothelioma diagnosis.