Friends and family seek support following an abnormal mesothelioma diagnosis
This week Boston news articles are advertising a fundraiser and benefit for local, Kevin Morrison, who was diagnosed with mesothelioma in February of this year. Unlike standard mesothelioma demographics, which show almost all patients between the ages of fifty and seventy, Kevin is just twenty-one years old.
Malignant mesothelioma is a rare and aggressive cancer caused by exposure to toxic chemical asbestos. Once asbestos fibers are inhaled they can begin a mutative process in otherwise healthy cells, which leads to malignant tumor development. These tumors spread irregularly through surrounding areas without showing any external signs or symptoms for a characteristically long latency period. Mesothelioma latency periods typically last twenty to fifty years. Kevin is at the age that most patients are when they first come in contact with toxic asbestos, rather than the standard age of diagnosis, which usually follows decades later.
Asbestos was heavily mined, bought and sold around the world through the last century, particularly in countries with advancing industrial markets such as US, UK, Australia and Japan. Developing countries around the world continue to use asbestos without adequate safety precautions or protection. World Health Organization estimates global mesothelioma cases are on the rise and could quickly reach ninety thousand annually if asbestos use trends are not immediately and greatly curbed.
Preferred in manufacturing for its fire resistant and durable qualities, asbestos was used in shipbuilding, munitions and military equipment construction. Asbestos was also used as an additive in countless household items and residential construction components. Although the health hazards associated with asbestos began to be understood in the late 1900s, regulations came after decades of exposure. Thousands of individuals continue to be diagnosed with mesothelioma each year following the characteristic latency period.
Mesothelioma treatments include surgeries, chemotherapy and radiation therapy. These are often administered in combination as palliative care, to focus on patient quality of life and to try to lengthen life expectancy. In standard mesothelioma cases, patient life expectancy averages just eighteen months following diagnosis.
According to local Boston news, Kevin’s health care providers have allegedly suggested alternative treatments for his case, which are not available in the Boston area. An avid athlete in high school, Kevin’s age and health may put him in a high success bracket for treatments. The specific type of mesothelioma he has been diagnosed with, peritoneal mesothelioma, has been more effectively treated in past cases than the more common plural mesothelioma, as it does not affect such primary organs like the heart and lungs. Kevin’s family and friends are holding fundraisers to try to help his family with costs of travel, treatment and care.
UK Mayor ends term with mesothelioma diagnosis
The area of Swindon, UK has seen years of British Railway work in its history. Unfortunately included in the rail works was toxic chemical asbestos, which was used in components of railway engines and associated equipment. Asbestos was prevalent in Swindon area railway works and commonly handled by workers in the area.
Asbestos causes several severe respiratory illnesses, including rare cancer mesothelioma. So many cases of mesothelioma have been diagnosed in former Swindon workers that the rare cancer has gained the nickname “Swindon disease.” Sadly, current Swindon Mayor Rex Barnett is the most recent patient of “Swindon disease.”
Diagnosed earlier this year with mesothelioma, it is believed Mayor Barnett began developing the disease during his employment with British Railway in the 1950s and 1960s. Mayor Barnett worked on repairs at the time that exposed him to asbestos fibers.
Characteristically, Mayor Barnett has undergone a long latency period, during which time malignant mesothelioma tumors spread through protective organ lining in irregular web like fashion.
Mesothelioma affects a growing number of people worldwide, according to World Health Organization. Although asbestos regulations have become more and more stringent in many countries, including UK, US, Australia and Japan, dozens of developing countries continue to use the toxic material without enforced safety precautions. About twenty thousand cases are currently reported annually; health officials estimate this number will quickly rise to ninety thousand if asbestos use is not halted.
Mesothelioma treatments include surgeries, chemotherapy and radiation therapy. These are often administered in combination as palliative care to focus on patient quality of life and to lengthen life expectancy. Following diagnosis, mesothelioma patient life expectancy ranges from just six months to two years.
Mayor Barnett’s health care providers have recommended chemotherapy. Although he is just at the end of his term as Mayor he has decided to move ahead with treatments sooner rather than later According to the Swindon Advertiser, he says, “I don’t doubt I could delay the chemo, but I don’t want to because I want to fight this thing now. I think every day I fight it, the better off I will be – if I said I will do my final bit as mayor and the handover properly, I’m wasting my chances.”
Mayor Barnett and his wife are known and respected for the many charitable donations they made possible through fundraisers and events. Public sympathy and concern for their sad news continues to be expressed.
Mesothelioma and asbestos disease cases tied to industrial work district
Inquests following three recent deaths raise concerns about safety and continued disease potential in the Bradford district, UK. Historically an industrial area, hundreds of asbestos related deaths have been reported as allegedly caused by workplace hazards in Bradford. Asbestos is known to cause rare and fatal mesothelioma cancer, as well as other severe respiratory illnesses.
Asbestos was introduced to developing industrial markets in the early nineteen hundreds. A naturally occurring substance that can be mined from the earth, asbestos was found to be durable and fire resistant. This made it a prime substance for use in insulations, construction components and any product facing consistent wear and tear. Asbestos was added to floor tiles, roofing sheets, paint, plumbing works and countless other items. Through the last century raw asbestos was mined, bought, sold and used in all major industrial markets. US, UK, Australia, Japan and other countries built their industrial empires on the back of this material. Asbestos containing materials made it into almost every structure, building, equipment and home built between the nineteen twenties and nineteen eighties.
As health threats associated with asbestos exposure began to surface, regulations for safe use were put in place in many working arenas. However, due to ignorance or negligence, many employers did not communicate asbestos health threats to their employees, or did not provide them with necessary protection. Malignant mesothelioma, characterized by a long latency period, began showing up decades after original asbestos exposure. Often, these cases were found in individuals long since retired from their work and twenty to fifty years past any asbestos contact.
Today, over six hundred thousand asbestos related lawsuits have been filed. Most of these are employees suing current or former employers for some form of negligence or intent to harm. With only one known cause of mesothelioma, it is not very difficult to find the asbestos culprit in someone’s work history.
Mesothelioma is most often found in protective lung lining, although it can affect other abdominal cavities as well. Mesothelioma is characterized by irregularly patterned tumors that grow through affected areas without showing signs or symptoms until decades after original asbestos exposure. Mesothelioma treatments include surgeries, chemotherapy and radiation therapy. There is no known cure for mesothelioma.
The three deaths in connection with Bradford district were all found to be asbestos related. According to the Telegraph & Argus news, postmortems found asbestos-caused plaque in one victim; asbestos fibers in another; and the third had been advised by his doctors that he was experiencing mesothelioma symptoms.
Chairman of Bradford Asbestos Victim Support Group, Carol Deurden, said of recent findings, “We are getting more and more inquiries about mesothelioma. The national figure is rising every year and is expected to keep on rising.”
Mesothelioma drug in testing may benefit ovarian cancer patients
Biotechnology company, Bionomics, has been seeking opinions from US and Australian medical leaders on the use of their drug BNC105 for treatment of ovarian cancer. Already in testing for renal cancer and mesothelioma, BNC105 could benefit women suffering from the fifth largest killer in women’s cancers.
Discussions are under way in hopes of scheduling clinical testing next year. Chief Executive at Bionomics, Deborah Rathjen says, “It has always been Bionomics’ intention to initiate further clinical trials of BNC105. The decision to undertake a clinical trial in women with ovarian cancer has followed extensive consultation with key opinion leaders in Australia and the US.”
Where ovarian cancer is specific to women, mesothelioma has long since affected a majority male population. This is not due to specific organs mesothelioma effects, but to its cause, toxic asbestos, and the environments historically responsible for asbestos exposure.
Considered an ‘industrial disease,’ mesothelioma is associated with large-scale works such as shipbuilding, mining, and refineries. For the first sixty-plus years of asbestos use in the world’s leading industrial markets, these arenas were operated and manned almost totally by men. In the past several decades as working demographics have shifted drastically, female cases of mesothelioma have risen.
Malignant mesothelioma is characterized by a latency period ranging from twenty to fifty years. Patients usually have no idea they are developing the fatal cancer until symptoms begin to show at the end of this latency period. For many, time or place of original asbestos exposure is a mystery, if they even know they were exposed at all.
As health and safety regulations began to change to match the growing information about the dangers of asbestos, employers had to follow through with employee education, awareness and safety precautions. Sadly, many did not, either out of ignorance or intentional negligence; many employers allowed their workers to continue working in environments made hazardous by asbestos. Because of this, to date, over six hundred thousand lawsuits have been filed related to asbestos; most by employees suffering with mesothelioma or another asbestos related disease, against their current or former employer.
Bionomics cancer drug could become a valuable addition to mesothelioma treatment options. There is currently no known cure for mesothelioma. Most treatments are administered as palliative care in an effort to extend patient life expectancy, which averages just eighteen months following diagnosis, and raise quality of life. Current treatment options include surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy.
Possible addition to palliative mesothelioma treatment
A recent study available in journal Lancet Oncology tested the effects of dignity therapy on patients with fatal or life threatening diseases. Dignity therapy, as stated in the study article is “a unique, individualised, short-term psychotherapy that was developed for patients (and their families) living with life-threatening or life-limiting illness.” If proved helpful, dignity therapy could be a welcome addition to mesothelioma treatment.
Mesothelioma affects about three thousand Americans, and an estimated twenty thousand people worldwide, each year. Estimated numbers are considered low for developing countries as many cases go unrecognized or unrecorded. Mesothelioma treatments include surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy in countries where facilities and providers of such are available. There is no known cure for mesothelioma.
Mesothelioma is caused by exposure to toxic chemical asbestos. Asbestos is a naturally occurring chemical that can be mined from the earth. Gaining popularity in the early nineteen hundreds, asbestos became know for its fire resistance, durability and stabilizing qualities. Products and processes that required these characteristics quickly began using large amounts of asbestos. Most common in industrial and manufacturing arenas, asbestos was also used to produce countless construction and household items that are still present in homes today.
Although relatively safe when contained, if asbestos fibers are released into the air, a dangerous health threat ensues. Asbestos fibers are often released through years of product wear and tear or by sudden demolition, either planned or accidental.
Once fibers are inhaled asbestos can begin a mutative process in otherwise healthy tissues. Malignant mesothelioma development results, spreading tumors through protective organ lining. Mesothelioma is most often found in lung lining, but can affect lining of other abdominal cavities of such organs as the heart or diaphragm.
The dignity therapy study included one hundred sixty five participants who were chosen at random in Canada, Australia and US. Although no major medical differences were seen in patients who received dignity therapy, there were reports of enhanced spiritual well being as well as lessening sadness in patient that received dignity therapy.
Study authors write, “Although the ability of dignity therapy to mitigate outright distress, such as depression, desire for death or suicidality, has yet to be proven, its benefits in terms of self-reported end-of-life experiences support its clinical application for patients nearing death.”
Mesothelioma is considered a fatal cancer with life expectancies ranging from just six months to two years following diagnosis. With such a grim prognosis, even the non-medical benefits of dignity therapy could provide much needed comfort for mesothelioma patients and their loved ones.
