Mesothelioma Diagnosis

Because its symptoms are varied and non-specific, a firm diagnosis of mesothelioma can be delayed while the cancer progresses. Yet, there are standard tests that do produce a diagnosis. If you or a loved one in the North Country area of New York is experiencing shortness of breath, weight loss, fluid in the lungs or stomach pains, see a doctor as soon as possible; these are symptoms of mesothelioma. Be sure to tell your physician about any previous asbestos exposure you or your loved one has had or any other occupational risk factors.

If you or a loved one in Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Jefferson, Lewis or St. Lawrence County, New York, has been diagnosed with mesothelioma, the North Country asbestos injury legal team of Belluck & Fox, LLP, can help. We investigate mesothelioma cases from the North Country and all of New York. We provide personalized and professional legal representation to mesothelioma sufferers and their families, and we can help you understand and consider the legal options available to you.

Use our online contact form or call Belluck & Fox, LLP’s mesothelioma attorneys toll-free in the North Country at 877-MESOTHELIOMA (637-6843) for expert assistance today.

Initial Evaluation of Mesothelioma

If it is possible that you have been exposed to asbestos at a North Country or upstate New York job site, it’s critical that you share all relevant information about your work history and possible asbestos exposure with your physician. Communication between patient and medical personnel is always important, and it is a crucial factor in your doctor’s ability to make the earliest possible detection of mesothelioma.

Initial evaluations can help identify patients at risk of developing mesothelioma. As part of such an evaluation, your physician can complete a medical history by asking questions intended to help determine the timeframe and environment in which you may have been exposed to asbestos.

In addition to developing a medical history and profile, your doctor will perform a complete physical examination. A physical normally includes:

• Listening to your chest cavity as you inhale and exhale to evaluate your breathing. If the sound of your breathing is partially muted or silent, it may be an indication of fluid in the chest cavity or of pleural effusion.
• Listening to your chest cavity while you make vowel sounds and comparing the sound resonance in the right and left chest cavities. Muted or dull sounds between the cavities could indicate a buildup of fluid.
• Tapping, or percussing, the chest area. A dull, solid thumping sound rather than a hollow resonance is an indication of the presence of fluid or a mass in the chest cavity.
• Checking for enlarged lymph nodes in the neck and armpits.

Unfortunately, a routine physical would identify few signs of mesothelioma. But, if your doctor knows the symptoms you suffer, your medical history, the presence of specific risk factors (such as work environment and asbestos exposure), and has the results of a complete physical examination, he can then use one or more diagnostic tests to determine whether malignant mesothelioma is present.

Testing for Mesothelioma

Doctors in the North Country and throughout New York have a variety of diagnostic procedures at their disposal to determine whether a patient has mesothelioma. Mesothelioma can be identified from imaging scans, tissue biopsies, pulmonary function tests, and other diagnostic techniques discussed below.

Imaging Techniques. Images of a patient’s internal organs and tissues might show the presence of fluid or tumors.

• Chest x-rays would show thickening of the pleura, any irregular mass present in the chest cavity, an accumulation of fluid in the lungs (pleural effusion), and/or the lowering of the lung fissures (spaces between the lobes of the lungs).
• Abdominal x-rays would show any irregular mass present in the abdominal cavity.
• CT or CAT (computed tomography) scans use x-rays and computers to provide detailed images of the body’s insides that conventional x-rays don’t. A rotating x-ray beam takes a series of pictures of the body from different angles, which the computer combines to produce a detailed cross-sectional image of a specific area of the body. With a CT scan, a radiologist is able to identify distinct aspects of the lungs and pleura.
• Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is a technique that scans the body with a strong magnetic field and radio waves to produce a series of cross-sectional pictures. MRI images are much clearer than routine x-ray images, and there is no harmful radiation involved. MRI scans show “soft tissues” in the body and can identify the extent of mesothelioma. New MRI techniques provide images that indicate tumor growth in the pleura and thoracic wall better than older methods were able to.
• Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scans use a camera to provide images of the body’s biological functions. The PET scan uses tracers to indicate where there is abnormal metabolic activity and can pinpoint the regions of active disease. This is useful because cancers and other diseases metabolize sugars quicker than normal tissues or organs do. PET scans can also identify extremely small cancerous cells, indicate benign or malignant cells and, because they show changes, help determine whether therapies are working against disease.
• Pathological Tests. Ultimately, a pathological examination is necessary to identify mesothelioma’s presence in a patient’s body. This includes a biopsy, which is removal of a tissue sample from the body to be examined under a microscope. The pathologist can then make a definitive diagnosis in a pathology report.

How a biopsy is performed may vary, depending upon what tissue your pathologist wants to examine.

• Fine-needle aspiration. A physician removes a tiny piece of tissue with a small needle.
• Thoracoscopy. In this relatively new technique, tissue from a pleural or pericardial tumor is obtained by using a thoracoscope (telescope-like instrument connected to a video camera) inserted through a small incision into the chest. The doctor can see the tumor through the thoracoscope and use special forceps to take a biopsy, or the doctor may collect fluid.
• Laparoscopy. In this procedure, a flexible tube is attached to a video camera that is inserted into the abdominal cavity via small incisions to obtain a biopsy of a peritoneal tumor. Fluid can also be collected during laparoscopy.
• Bronchoscopy. If pleural mesothelioma is suspected, the doctor inserts a flexible lighted tube down the trachea and into the bronchi to check for masses in the airway. Small samples of abnormal-appearing tissue can then be removed for testing.
• Mediastinoscopy. Your doctor can examine your lymph nodes to determine whether the mesothelioma has begun to spread. Lymph nodes are collections of immune system cells that help the body fight infection. During a mediastinoscopy, a lighted tube is inserted under the patient’s sternum (chest bone) at the neck level and then moved down into the chest. This enables the surgeon to see the lymph nodes and take tissue samples. This procedure can be used to diagnose lung cancer or mesothelioma.

Pulmonary Function Tests (PFTs). A wide variety of tests known as PTFs are used to evaluate the respiratory system. They enable the assessment and diagnosis of pulmonary disease and aid in determining a course of treatment. PFTs include simple peak flow measurements and complex body plethysmography and ventilation/perfusion scans, which are performed in hospitals and clinics. PFTs also help monitor responses to treatment.

Although an initial diagnosis of mesothelioma may be difficult to obtain, the above medical procedures and diagnostic tests can result in a clear diagnosis. Early diagnosis is a primary variable in determining a long-term prognosis.

Stages of Mesothelioma. If testing results in a finding of pleural mesothelioma, the physician then needs to determine the “stage” of the disease to determine the best treatment plan. Stage indicates the extent of the disease, or how much of the body it affects.

• Stage I pleural mesothelioma is “localized,” meaning it occurs in an isolated area.
• Stage II mesothelioma may have spread to an area adjacent to the initial site of the disease.
• Stage III mesothelioma may have spread further, to multiple tissues or structures in the body, and it may have affected the lymph nodes.
• Stage IV mesothelioma is an advanced cancer, meaning the disease has spread throughout a large portion of the body, possibly including parts of the body far from the chest.

Contact Our North Country Mesothelioma Attorneys Today

If you or a loved one in Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Jefferson, Lewis or St. Lawrence County, New York, has been diagnosed with mesothelioma, the North Country asbestos injury legal team of Belluck & Fox, LLP, can help. We investigate mesothelioma cases from the North Country and all of New York. We provide personalized and professional legal representation to mesothelioma sufferers and their families, and we can help you understand and consider the legal options available to you.

Use our online contact form or call Belluck & Fox, LLP’s mesothelioma lawyers toll-free at 877-MESOTHELIOMA (637-6843) for expert assistance today.