About the Book
Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Pages: 74. Chapters: Acanthoma, Adamantinoma, Adrenocortical carcinoma, Atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumor, Bellini duct carcinoma, Bronchioloalveolar carcinoma, Carcinoma of the penis, Cholangiocarcinoma, Chondrosarcoma, Choroid plexus tumor, Clear-cell sarcoma of the kidney, Clear cell adenocarcinoma of the vagina, Cronkhite-Canada syndrome, Dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans, Desmoplastic small-round-cell tumor, Endocrine oncology, Endodermal sinus tumor, Ependymoma, Epithelial-myoepithelial carcinoma, Epithelial-myoepithelial carcinoma of the lung, Esthesioneuroblastoma, Fallopian tube cancer, Ganglioglioma, Germinoma, Gigantiform cementoma, Gliosarcoma, Heart cancer, Hemangiosarcoma, Hereditary breast-ovarian cancer syndrome, Hodgkin's lymphoma, Howel-Evans syndrome, Hyalinizing clear cell carcinoma, Hypopharyngeal cancer, Islet cell carcinoma, Juxtaglomerular cell tumor, Kidney cancer, Leiomyosarcoma, Leydig cell tumour, Malignant acrospiroma, Malignant rhabdoid tumour, Mast cell leukemia, Mesothelioma, NUT midline carcinoma, Pheochromocytoma, Plasma cell leukemia, Pleuropulmonary blastoma, Primitive neuroectodermal tumor, Sacrococcygeal teratoma, Salivary gland neoplasm, Sarcoma botryoides, Sertoli-Leydig cell tumour, Sertoli cell tumour, Sinonasal undifferentiated carcinoma, Splenic lymphoma with villous lymphocytes, Thymic carcinoma, Thymoma, Ureteral cancer, Urethral cancer, Waldenstrom's macroglobulinemia. Excerpt: Mesothelioma (or, more precisely, malignant mesothelioma) is a rare form of cancer that develops from cells of the mesothelium, the protective lining that covers many of the internal organs of the body. Mesothelioma is most commonly caused by exposure to asbestos. The most common anatomical site for mesothelioma is the pleura (the outer lining of the lungs and internal chest wall), but it can also arise in the peritoneum (the lining of the abdominal cavity), the pericardium (the sac that surrounds the heart), or the tunica vaginalis (a sac that surrounds the testis). Most people who develop mesothelioma have worked in jobs where they inhaled or ingested asbestos fibers, or were exposed to airborne asbestos dust and fibers in other ways. It has also been suggested that washing clothes of a family member who worked with asbestos increases their risk for developing mesothelioma. Unlike lung cancer, there seems to be no association between mesothelioma and tobacco smoking, but smoking greatly increases the risk of other asbestos-induced cancers. Some people who were exposed to asbestos have collected damages for asbestos-related disease, including mesothelioma. Compensation via asbestos funds or class action lawsuits is an important issue in law practices regarding mesothelioma (see asbestos and the law). Signs and symptoms of mesothelioma include shortness of breath due to pleural effusion (fluid between the lung and the chest wall), chest wall pain, and constitutional signs such as unexplained weight loss. The diagnosis may be suspected based on chest X-ray and CT scan findings, but must be confirmed either by examining serous effusion cytology or with a biopsy (removing a sample of the suspicious tissue). A thoracoscopy (inserting a tube with a camera into the chest) can be used to acquire biopsy material, and allows the introduction of substances such as talc to obliterate the pleural space (a procedure called pleurodesis), preventing more fluid from accumulating an
