Mesothelioma
Mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer that is almost untreatable and considered as one of the deadliest diseases known to man. Mesothelioma cancer affects the mesothelium. The mesothelium is the sac that lines and protects the vital organs such as the heart and the lungs. When one is diagnosed with mesothelioma cancer, the cells in the lining of this sac becomes abnormal and malignant. When cancer spreads, it could affect the rest of the organs of the body.

Caused by exposure to asbestos and asbestos related substances, mesothelioma has claimed more than 2,000 lives per year. These are the lives of hardworking men and women who have labored for practically a lifetime to provide for their families. These are people who work in shipyards, mines. And people whose professions are either engineers, steel workers, auto mechanics. As they struggle everyday to feed their families they do not know of hazards of asbestos that will eventually claim their lives and the lives of their loved ones.

When asbestos is cut, sawn and broken into pieces, small particles are released into the atmosphere and when inhaled some become lodged in the mesothelioma cells thus developing into cancer cells.

What makes mesothelioma even deadlier is its latency period. Diagnosis can only be done 30 to 50 years after exposure to asbestos. For most victims it might be too late already, since cancer needs immediate diagnosis to make immediate treatment to achieve immediate recovery. Loved ones of mesothelioma victims are not immune to the hazards brought about by asbestos exposure. Second hand exposure could result to the same symptoms that the initial victim is experiencing. Furthermore, those residing in areas near factories that handle asbestos related substances are not at all impervious to the disease.