Mesothelioma
Mesothelioma is often a rare cancer that is aggressive and usually develops in the lining of the lungs, heart, or abdomen. It is usually caused by exposure to asbestos. Currently mesothelioma has no known cure and has a low chance of recovery. The most common symptoms of mesothelioma is shortness of breath, chest pain, and pleural effusions. Also mesothelioma can breakdown the lung tissue between the bronchial tree and the pleural space. This can lead to pneumothorax, which is having air in the pleural space.
CAUSES
The main culprit of mesothelioma is asbestos. Asbestos is a mineral that is commonly used in construction materials, such as roofing tiles, paints, and insulation. It has strong fibers which gives it properties of having good …show more content…
In diagnostic radiology we technicians are responsible to take the PA chest x-ray of the patient in order for the radiologist to properly diagnosis the image. The image should clearly show the lung field, so that means neither the top or bottom should be cut off. If positive for mesothelioma, it’s usually because of certain key findings in the image. For instance images showcasing pneumothorax, pleural effusion, and pleural thickening is a sign mesothelioma. The best way to see mesothelioma findings on a radiograph is plaque-like, concentric, unilateral, or nodular pleural thickening. The most common is pleural effusions and they may obscure the existence of the underlying pleural thickening (Gerald de Lacey. 2008, May 14). When a pneumothorax is small, this air-fluid level can be the only key to the diagnosis of a pneumothorax, also often skinfolds on a patient can be misdiagnosed as pneumothorax. Also, recognition of a pneumothorax depends on the volume of air in the pleural space and the position of the body. On a supine radiograph a pneumothorax can be subtle and approximately 30% of pneumothoraxes are undetected (Truong, M. T., 2004). The now tumor that is forming usually extends into the fissures, then they become irregular and thickened in contour. The tumor can rigidly restrict the lung, causing compression of diaphragm elevation, lung parenchyma, intercostal space narrowing, and mediastinal shift …show more content…
However if mesothelioma is found early in a patient, there are treatments to prevent further rapid spread of this cancer. Currently the three forms of options for mesothelioma treatment is surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy. Surgery route is mainly for patients that have early-stage mesothelioma diagnosis. Surgery can be used to remove most or all of the tumors. Also the location of the tumor can affect the surgery. The second form of treatment is chemotherapy. Chemo works by attacking the tumor cells mainly, because there are rapidly growing, like most cancer cells. Most patients after having surgery done get chemo after, so any specs of tumor that wasn’t able to removed gets attacking by chemo. Lastly, the final form of treatment is radiation therapy. Radiation is given to the patient thru a series of days or months, to remove any forms of existing
CAUSES
The main culprit of mesothelioma is asbestos. Asbestos is a mineral that is commonly used in construction materials, such as roofing tiles, paints, and insulation. It has strong fibers which gives it properties of having good …show more content…
In diagnostic radiology we technicians are responsible to take the PA chest x-ray of the patient in order for the radiologist to properly diagnosis the image. The image should clearly show the lung field, so that means neither the top or bottom should be cut off. If positive for mesothelioma, it’s usually because of certain key findings in the image. For instance images showcasing pneumothorax, pleural effusion, and pleural thickening is a sign mesothelioma. The best way to see mesothelioma findings on a radiograph is plaque-like, concentric, unilateral, or nodular pleural thickening. The most common is pleural effusions and they may obscure the existence of the underlying pleural thickening (Gerald de Lacey. 2008, May 14). When a pneumothorax is small, this air-fluid level can be the only key to the diagnosis of a pneumothorax, also often skinfolds on a patient can be misdiagnosed as pneumothorax. Also, recognition of a pneumothorax depends on the volume of air in the pleural space and the position of the body. On a supine radiograph a pneumothorax can be subtle and approximately 30% of pneumothoraxes are undetected (Truong, M. T., 2004). The now tumor that is forming usually extends into the fissures, then they become irregular and thickened in contour. The tumor can rigidly restrict the lung, causing compression of diaphragm elevation, lung parenchyma, intercostal space narrowing, and mediastinal shift …show more content…
However if mesothelioma is found early in a patient, there are treatments to prevent further rapid spread of this cancer. Currently the three forms of options for mesothelioma treatment is surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy. Surgery route is mainly for patients that have early-stage mesothelioma diagnosis. Surgery can be used to remove most or all of the tumors. Also the location of the tumor can affect the surgery. The second form of treatment is chemotherapy. Chemo works by attacking the tumor cells mainly, because there are rapidly growing, like most cancer cells. Most patients after having surgery done get chemo after, so any specs of tumor that wasn’t able to removed gets attacking by chemo. Lastly, the final form of treatment is radiation therapy. Radiation is given to the patient thru a series of days or months, to remove any forms of existing