Mesothelioma Diagnosis

If you or a loved one in the Finger Lakes region of New York is experiencing any mesothelioma symptoms, including shortness of breath, weight loss, fluid in the lungs or stomach pains, consult your doctor right away. Make sure that your physician is aware of any previous asbestos exposure and occupational risk factors.

If you or a loved one in the Finger Lakes region has been diagnosed with mesothelioma, contact the asbestos injury lawyers of Belluck & Fox, LLP, today. Our mesothelioma attorneys handle asbestos disease cases throughout New York and provide personalized and professional legal representation. We can advise you of the legal options available for you and your family.

For more information, use our online contact form or call Belluck & Fox, LLP’s mesothelioma lawyers toll-free at 877-MESOTHELIOMA (637-6843).

Initial Evaluation of Mesothelioma

Initial medical evaluations play a critical role in identifying those at risk of developing mesothelioma. To determine your risk factors and symptoms, your physician will obtain from you a medical history that includes questions intended to help determine the time frame and environment in which you may have been exposed to asbestos. It’s essential that you share with your physician all relevant information about your work history and possible exposure to asbestos.

Your doctor will also perform a complete physical examination, during which he or she may do the following:

• Listen to your chest cavity as you inhale and exhale in order to evaluate your breath sounds. There may be an absence of breath sounds, or these sounds may be muted. The absence of, or muted nature of, breath sounds may indicate fluid in the chest cavity (pleural effusion).
• Listen to the chest cavity while having you make vowel sounds, comparing the sound resonance in the right and left chest cavities. Muted, or dull, sounds between the cavities could indicate a buildup of fluid.
• Tap the chest area, which can reveal a dull, solid thumping sound, rather than a hollow resonance. This may also indicate the presence of fluid, or a mass, in the chest cavity.
• Check for enlarged lymph nodes.

An initial physical may not reveal signs that would identify mesothelioma. A doctor can use one or more diagnostic tests to determine if the disease is present.

Diagnostic Tests for Mesothelioma

Doctors in the Finger Lakes region and throughout New York use a variety of diagnostic procedures to determine if a patient has mesothelioma. The presence of mesothelioma can be identified by comparing results from imaging scans, tissue biopsies, pulmonary function tests, and other diagnostic techniques.

Imaging Techniques. Many available technologies allow doctors to view a person’s internal organs and tissues. These sorts of images might show the presence of fluid or tumors.

• A chest X–ray may show an unusual thickening of the pleura, lowering of the lung fissures (spaces between the lobes of the lungs), an accumulation of fluid in the lungs (pleural effusion), and/or an irregular mass in the chest cavity.
• An abdominal X-ray may show an irregular mass among the abdominal organs.
• A CT or CAT (computed tomography) scan uses X-ray and computers to give more sophisticated and detailed pictures of the body’s interior compared to conventional X-rays. A rotating X-ray beam is used to take a series of pictures of the body from different angles. A computer combines the series of pictures to produce a detailed cross-sectional image of a specific part of the body. The CT scan allows a radiologist to see distinct aspects of the lungs and pleura.
• Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) uses a strong magnetic field and radio waves to scan the body. There is no harmful radiation involved. This imaging method produces a series of cross-sectional pictures. MRI scans are useful for viewing “soft tissues” in the body and can show the extent of mesothelioma. New MRI techniques combine surface imaging with quick breath-holding sequences and a gadolinium contrast medium, providing images that detect tumor growth in the pleura and thoracic wall better than older methods. MRI images tend to be quite clear and are superior to routine X–ray images.
• Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scans use a camera that produces powerful images of the body’s biological functions. Because cancers and other disease processes metabolize sugars at a higher rate than normal tissues or organs, the PET scan uses tracers to indicate where abnormal metabolic activity is occurring, and can pinpoint the regions of active disease. PET scans can also identify extremely small cancerous cells, indicate benign or malignant cells, and help determine whether treatment therapies are working.

Pathological Tests. Mesothelioma is ultimately diagnosed by a pathological examination. A biopsy removes tissue, which a pathologist examines under a microscope. The pathologist then provides a definitive diagnosis in a pathology report.

How a biopsy is performed varies depending on the location of the tissue to be examined.

• A tissue sample can be removed by fine-needle aspiration, in which a physician removes a tiny piece of tissue with a small needle. Tissue from a pleural or pericardial tumor also can be obtained using a relatively new technique called thoracoscopy. A thoracoscope (telescope-like instrument connected to a video camera) is inserted through a small incision into the chest. The doctor can see the tumor through the thoracoscope and can use special forceps to take a tissue biopsy. A laparoscopy can be used to see and obtain a biopsy of a peritoneal tumor. In this procedure, a flexible tube is attached to a video camera that is inserted into the abdominal cavity via small incisions. Fluid can also be collected during thoracoscopy or laparoscopy.
• A bronchoscopy may be performed if a physician suspects pleural mesothelioma. In this process, the doctor inserts a flexible lighted tube down the trachea into the bronchi to check for masses in the airway. At that time, small samples of abnormal-appearing tissue may also be removed for testing.
• Lymph nodes are collections of immune system cells that help the body fight infection. By examining the lymph nodes, a doctor can determine if the cancer has spread. During a mediastinoscopy, a patient has a lighted tube inserted under the sternum (chest bone) at the neck level and then moved down into the chest. The surgeon can see the lymph nodes and take tissue samples to check for cancer. This procedure can help the physician determine if you have lung cancer or mesothelioma.

Pulmonary Function Tests (PFTs). PFTs encompass a wide variety of tests that evaluate the entire respiratory system. The tests are used to assess and diagnose pulmonary disease and to help determine a course of treatment. PFTs can be a simple peak flow measurement or complex body plethysmography and ventilation/perfusion scans performed in hospitals and clinics. PFTs can also monitor a patient’s response to treatment.

Although it is often difficult to detect mesothelioma initially, the medical procedures and diagnostic tests described above can lead to a clear diagnosis. Early medical diagnosis is one of the primary variables affecting long-term prognosis.

Staging. If pleural mesothelioma is diagnosed, the physician then determines the “stage” of the disease in order to arrive at the best treatment plan. The stage of the disease refers to its extent, or how much of the body it affects.

• Stage I pleural mesothelioma is “localized,” meaning that it is limited to an isolated area.
• Stage II mesothelioma may have spread to an adjacent area.
• Stage III mesothelioma may have spread to other tissues or structures in the body, and it may have affected the lymph nodes.
• Stage IV mesothelioma means that the cancer has become advanced and spread throughout a larger portion of the body, possibly including distant parts of the body.

Contact Our Finger Lakes Mesothelioma Illness Attorneys Today

If you or a loved one in the Finger Lakes region of New York has been diagnosed with mesothelioma, the asbestos injury attorneys of Belluck & Fox, LLP, can help. We handle mesothelioma cases in the Finger Lakes region and throughout New York. Use our online contact form or call Belluck & Fox, LLP’s mesothelioma lawyers toll-free at 877-MESOTHELIOMA (637-6843).