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| An Overview of Pericardial Mesothelioma |
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Mesothelioma is a cancer that is almost always caused by exposure to asbestos. Among different types of mesothelioma, pericardial mesothelioma is one of the rarest and the most difficult to detect. A person who is exposed to asbestos for a longer period of time is the most prone to pericardial mesothelioma. Mesothelioma affects the body part known as mesothelium. Mesothelium is a very important organ of the body as it forms a sac filled with fluid around the heart. It keeps the heart well within the chest cavity and also prevents an excess expansion of the heart when the blood flow increases. The cavity that is present within the mesothelium surrounding the heart produces fluid that decreases the friction between the membranes and helps in keeping the area well lubricated. In a person suffering from pericardial mesothelioma the asbestos tissue gets logged in within this cavity. It remains dormant within this cavity for a very long time, sometimes up to more than 30 years. These asbestos fibers cause the development of cancerous tissues within the cavity which expand it. The symptoms that the patient suffering from pericardial mesothelioma may face are irregularities in heart function, heart palpitations, and some times inflammation of the area around the heart. The major impediment that the doctors face while dealing with pericardial mesothelioma is that it is detected only in the later stages. At that stage of cancer it becomes very much difficult to comprehensively treat it. The best that medical science can offer is a better and an improved lifestyle for the remaining years of the patient’s life.
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