University’s Division of Clinical Oncology at the School of Molecular Medical Sciences lead researcher Professor Lindy Durrant, trusts that the novel vaccine developed which aims at tumor cells without causing harm to healthy tissue, may be favorable for treating patients with malignant melanoma (skin cancer).
Nottingham scientists were given the go ahead to test a vaccine that just may reverse and possibly cure malignant melanoma which is the deadliest do of skin cancer.
As of 2009, 68,720 cases of skin cancer were reported and caused 8,650 deaths that year. Melanoma is almost always curable at the very early stages if detected. More than two million cases of skin cancer are found in the United States each year.
Cases of malignant melanoma have increased more than four times over the last 30 years and within the last 25 years rates of malignant melanoma have increased rapidly over any other cancer. It is the most frequent cancer in young adults aged 15 to 34 years of age, which could be associated to unsafe conduct like exposing self to sun on beaches in foreign countries and using tanning booths. Each year most of the skin cancer deaths are from malignant melanoma.
Professor Durrant stated until currently, early detection has been a vital element in successfully treating the disease. Early stages of the cancer can be cured with surgery by removing the skin melanoma totally. When it is not detected in the early stages chemotherapy and radiotherapy simply do not prove useful in removing the melanoma. Original compounds though are being tested.
The clinical trail is still in the very beginning stages so there is no probability to foresee a outcome of the trail. However, if the results from the lab are duplicated in the patients there could be a very viable chance of greatly increasing the possibilities of favorable treatment that the vaccine will heal at least 10 to 20% of the patients diagnosed with melanoma.
The Gene Therapy Advisory Committee along with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency have given permission to test the novel SCIB1 vaccine. The clinical trails are to launch soon at Nottingham City Hospital and centers in Manchester and New Castle.
Patients who are currently suffering from advanced malignant melanoma which spread to other parts of the body will be the first to receive the vaccine.
The vaccine works by starting the body’s own natural defense systems which have DNA and genetic materials from tumors. In short, it changes particular immune cells that attack melanoma. It will not attack the surrounding healthy tissues.
The scientific team trusts that in origin, new vaccines established on the same system may be able to possibly be used to spot other kinds of cancer tumors such as prostate and breast.
Alternative skin cancer therapies are meant to help aide with conventional therapies. Here are a few alternative therapies that are used for skin cancer.
Nutritional Therapy
One third of all cancer deaths comes from malnutrition according to the National Cancer Institute. Cancer does diminish nutrients in the body and causes dramatic weight loss. Not only does the cancer effect your desire for food but so do the conventional treatments received along with being able to digest foods.
Assessments are done by nutritionists to implement a opinion for each patient to stop malnutrition from occurring along with reduction of side effects and letting the body become overall in wellness.
Naturopathic Medicine
Naturopathic practitioners are trained to be primary care physicians and some choose to focus on certain treatment methods a few of them are:
Botanical Medicine: the spend of plant substances as medicine.
Physical Medicine: uses its contain therapeutic methods of manipulating muscles, spine and bones.
Acupuncture/Acupressure
Acupuncture using tiny needles inserted in various areas of the body and Acupressure is the same treatment exception being finger pressure is used in place of needles. These methods are used to reduce pain.
Sources:
Medical News Today
Cancer Treatment Centers of America
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Filed under Malignant Mesothelioma by on Sep 2nd, 2010.
It has been reported on www.maacenter.org that a couple in West Virginia has filed an asbestos lawsuit against 48 defendants. The lawsuit arises from the husband’s allegedly asbestos-related lung cancer. The husband was diagnosed with lung cancer on August 19, 2009. The lawsuit asserts that the husband was exposed to asbestos while employed at Union Carbide as an insulator for over 30 years beginning in 1959 and ending in 1991.
Many retired workers are at risk of developing asbestos cancers such as mesothelioma and lung cancer because they worked with asbestos containing products and in the process, were exposed to lethal asbestos fibers. Asbestos is a mineral that is flexible and is resistant to heat. Therefore, it was frail in a wide range of products that require these characteristics. Some asbestos containing products include brakes, tiles and roofing shingles. When asbestos containing products are disturbed, they can release asbestos fibers. These fibers are generally not visible to the human eye and can remain suspended in the environment for long periods. This raises the risk of inhalation of asbestos fibers. Disturbance of asbestos containing products can occur through activities such as cutting and hammering. Many workers who worked with asbestos containing products regularly cut, hammered or otherwise disturbed those products so as to trigger the release of cancer causing asbestos fibers.
Malignant mesothelioma is the most serious type of asbestos cancer. Mesothelioma has no cure and patients typically have a life expectancy of less than two years from the time of diagnosis. Mesothelioma cancer frequently develops in the chest cavity and in the lining of the lungs. This type of mesothelioma is known as pleural mesothelioma (or lung mesothelioma). The cancer can also develop in the lining of the abdomen (known as peritoneal mesothelioma). The mesothelioma symptoms exhibited by a patient largely depend on the type of mesothelioma a person has. People with peritoneal mesothelioma often experience abdominal swelling and problems with digestion. People with pleural mesothelioma often experience difficulty with breathing, shortness of breath and coughing of blood.
Currently, there is no cure for mesothelioma. However, there are treatment approaches that have proven to be effective for some patients. These treatment approaches tend to be most successful during the early stages of mesothelioma. Experts generally agree that there are four stages of mesothelioma. The stages indicate the extent to which mesothelioma cancer has spread in the body. In the earlier stages, the cancer is usually local to the point of origin in the body. In the latter stages, the cancer has usually spread to areas of the body that are farther away from the cancer’s point of origin.
Surgery is a treatment reach for mesothelioma. It involves removing parts of the body that have been affected by mesothelioma cancer. Surgery is a viable treatment option only when the cancer is in the early stages. Chemotherapy attempts to treat mesothelioma with the use of a drug regimen. Side effects of chemotherapy include anemia, diarrhea, fatigue and hair loss. The mesothelioma treatment PDT (photodynamic therapy) uses light of a specific wavelength to kill cancer cells.
Those who have been diagnosed with an asbestos cancer such as lung cancer and mesothelioma, should know that they may have legal rights. This is because asbestos cancers are caused by asbestos exposure that can often be traced to the negligence of companies in the asbestos industry. Thus, it is important for asbestos cancer patients to consult an experienced mesothelioma attorney in addition to consulting a medical professional.
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Filed under Mesothelioma Prognosis by on Sep 2nd, 2010.
The survival rate for patients diagnosed with melanoma is increasing according to a current look.
The German study reports that the survival of people with melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, has gone up over the past 25 years or so.
The researcher’s report, which is published in the medical journal Cancer, states that melanoma is quite curable if it’s caught early. The improvement in survival that they have observed, however, may not be entirely due to being diagnosed early.
Dr. Claus Garbe and his colleagues from Eberhard-Karis-University in Teubingen, Germany studied the survival of 4,791 patients that were found to have invasive melanoma in southern Germany during a period between 1976 and 2001. The analysis helped to assess factors that are associated with better melanoma survival rates.
The research showed that 80% of patients diagnosed with melanoma between the years of 1976 and 1989 had a ten year survival rate, while 88.6% of patients diagnosed between the years 1990 to 2001 survived.
A factor that affects tumor deadliness is its thickness. The German research team found that the average tumor thickness actually decreased from 1.07 millilmeters in the period from 1976 to 1989 to 0.75 millimeters from the 1990 to 2001 period.
“Interestingly, we found that the survival of patients diagnosed since 1990 seemed to have improved beyond the effects of early diagnosis,” Garbe’s team said.
“This could be explained by changes in unmeasured biologic features of melanoma, or by improvements in the management of this disease,” the team suggests.
The analysis showed that tumor thickness, age, ulceration, gender, anatomical dwelling, and period of primary diagnosis independently predicted a patient’s overall survival.
The report is good news in the battle against cancer considering it shows a decrease in the most deadly form of skin cancer.
Melanoma is a malignant tumor of melanocytes. It is mainly a skin tumor, but it can also be seen in the melanocytes of the eye. Melanoma of the skin has 160,000 new cases worldwide per year. It is most frequent in white men living in sunny climates.
The World Health Organization reports that about 48,000 deaths occur worldwide due to malignant melanoma annually.
The diagnosis of melanoma requires an experience doctor because early stages of the disease look identical to harmless moles. The treatment of melanoma includes surgical removal of the tumor, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, adjuvant treatment, and radiation therapy.
Sources:
http://www.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/conditions/04/09/melanoma.improved.reut/
http://www.dogflu.ca/04062007/16/survival_rate_increasing_for_melanoma
http://www.wikipedia.com
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Filed under Malignant Mesothelioma by on Sep 3rd, 2010.
Mesothelioma is a type of lung cancer specifically caused by direct contact with asbestos. It will affect the lungs and can spread into the abdomen. There are some celebrated deaths from the disease, like Steve McQueen and rocker Warren Zevon. While this lung cancer is not directly associated with smoking, smoking does increase the chances of getting mesothelioma if the smoker is around the asbestos.
Symptoms of Mesothelioma
It is important to remember that signs and symptoms of mesothelioma could not occur until decades after the asbestos exposure.
- Fever
- Jaundice
- Blood clots
- Organ bleeds, and organ edema
Early Pleura Affected Signs:
These are the symptoms that demonstrate that the cancer is still in the pleural area of the lung and probably hasn’t progressed into the abdomen.
- Fatigue, weakness, shortness of breath
- Chest pain
- Coughing, wheezing, coughing up blood
Later Stage Abdomen Tumor Signs:
These are the signs that show that the cancer has probably spread into the abdomen and has progressed further than the pleura of the lungs.
- Weight loss
- Bowel difficulties
- Stomach mass and pain
If any of these signs of asbestos related lung cancer are present, see a healthcare provider immediately for screening. The earlier that it is found, the better the chances for survival and higher quality of life.
Treatment of Mesothelioma
Treatment options include surgical options, radiation, immunotherapy, and chemotherapy. Talking with a medical profession can give a wider range of options with those that are specifically for the stage of cancer that the mesothelioma has progressed to.
Best option choice in studies seems to be chemotherapy yet has side effects like nausea and vomiting. However, studies have shown an improved quality of life and increase in lung function after chemotherapy treatments with mesothelioma patients.
Mesothelioma Diagnosis
Diagnosis can be done with a coronal section CT scan where the doctors are able to see the fluid build up in the lungs. While symptoms can point to many other conditions than just mesothelioma or lung cancers, having a patient history of being around asbestos will typically let the doctor start searching for this type of cancer. Chest x-rays and lung function tests can also show signs of fluid and pleural thickening.
There is a procedure that once fluid is seen can biopsy the tissue to check for cancer cells. There are different ways to bag the biopsy tissue, through thoracoscopy or laparoscopy. Either way, lab analysis of the cells can determine whether they are malignant lung cancer or not.
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Filed under Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma by on Sep 5th, 2010.
Mesothelioma is a cancer caused by contact with asbestos, a carcinogen. The disease attacks the lining of the lung or the lining of the abdominal cavity. It can be difficult to deal with this type of cancer and find decent mesothelioma info online. This article will outline some of the main treatment options available to deal with the disease. The more knowledge you have about this disease, the better.
Most people searching for mesothelioma info are looking for information regarding the different treatments currently available to those affected by the cancer. The type of treatment you receive for it depends on many factors, including cancer stage, location of the disease, and how far it has spread. It also depends on how the cancer cells look under the microscope. Your age and personal wishes are another factor to consider. Although this disease is very dangerous, there have been successful treatments.
There are three main treatment types for those who have been diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma – surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. Surgery physically removes the cancer, while chemotherapy using drugs to kill the cancer. With radiation therapy treatment high doses of x-rays and other high-energy rays are used to target and kill the cancer. In your search for proper information, you may have already discovered that in many cases, two or more of these methods are used to beat the cancer.
One of the surgical procedures that can be performed on mesothelioma patients is called palliative surgery, which involves treating the symptoms of the without going after the disease directly. Palliative treatments often include drainage of the chest tube and pleurodesis – the buildup of fluid is usually what first alerts patients to the reality of their situation. After the fluid has been initially drained, it often returns and patients have to undergo more procedures to permanently remove the remaining fluid. The pleural space must be closed to prevent future problems with fluid buildup.
If you want to know more about mesothelioma info, it’s important to realize that other procedures are designed to cure the disease, rather than for palliative reasons. The goal of this type of surgical procedure is to remove the whole of the cancer – but take note that with the surgical removal of the cancer miniature remnants of the disease are always left behind and have the potential to grow back after the surgery has been completed. It takes time, but you have to realize that this is a strong possibility with surgical treatment procedures.
For this very reason adjuvant therapy is carried out after the surgical draw to minimize this possibility. This method of treatment is administered in addition to the necessary surgery to remove residual disease.
For patients in the early stages, a pleurectomy/decortication is usually the route taken to remove the tumor. If the doctors can’t remove the entire tumor without removing the lung, the lung will be taken out (this is referred to as a pneumonectomy). As science progresses, there are other options for treatment, including gene therapy, immunotherapy, and photodynamic therapy.
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Filed under Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma by on Sep 10th, 2010.
Mesothelioma is a cancer caused by contact with asbestos, a carcinogen. The disease attacks the lining of the lung or the lining of the abdominal cavity. It can be difficult to deal with this type of cancer and find decent mesothelioma info online. This article will outline some of the main treatment options available to deal with the disease. The more knowledge you have about this disease, the better.
Most people searching for mesothelioma info are looking for information regarding the different treatments currently available to those affected by the cancer. The type of treatment you receive for it depends on many factors, including cancer stage, location of the disease, and how far it has spread. It also depends on how the cancer cells look under the microscope. Your age and personal wishes are another factor to consider. Although this disease is very unsafe, there have been successful treatments.
There are three main treatment types for those who have been diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma – surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. Surgery physically removes the cancer, while chemotherapy using drugs to kill the cancer. With radiation therapy treatment high doses of x-rays and other high-energy rays are used to target and kill the cancer. In your search for valid information, you may have already discovered that in many cases, two or more of these methods are used to beat the cancer.
One of the surgical procedures that can be performed on mesothelioma patients is called palliative surgery, which involves treating the symptoms of the without going after the disease directly. Palliative treatments often include drainage of the chest tube and pleurodesis – the buildup of fluid is usually what first alerts patients to the reality of their situation. After the fluid has been initially drained, it often returns and patients have to undergo more procedures to permanently remove the remaining fluid. The pleural space must be closed to prevent future problems with fluid buildup.
If you want to know more about mesothelioma info, it’s notable to realize that other procedures are designed to cure the disease, rather than for palliative reasons. The goal of this type of surgical scheme is to remove the whole of the cancer – but take note that with the surgical removal of the cancer microscopic remnants of the disease are always left behind and have the potential to grow back after the surgery has been completed. It takes time, but you have to realize that this is a strong possibility with surgical treatment procedures.
For this very reason adjuvant therapy is carried out after the surgical procedure to minimize this possibility. This procedure of treatment is administered in addition to the primary surgery to remove residual disease.
For patients in the early stages, a pleurectomy/decortication is usually the route taken to remove the tumor. If the doctors can’t remove the entire tumor without removing the lung, the lung will be taken out (this is referred to as a pneumonectomy). As science progresses, there are other options for treatment, including gene therapy, immunotherapy, and photodynamic therapy.
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Filed under Mesothelioma Treatment by on Sep 11th, 2010.
With many public service announcements focused on the early detection of cancer, there continues to be a rise in the number of women diagnosed with malignant melanoma. While there are risk factors associated with malignant melanoma, the most current trait among female cancer patients is the continued lack of early cancer detection. As a woman, it is important to become familiar with the early warning signs and treatment of malignant melanoma in an effort to improve your overall quality of life.
Moles and UV exposure are the two significant health risks that women face, often leading to malignant melanoma, without any early warning signs. Because moles are usually considered a part of physical beauty in women, women typically do not pay close attention to the appearance of their moles. Over time, however, a mole may become malignant and require removal and treatment for a cancerous condition.
In additional to mole complications, women are also more apt to exposure their skin to damaging UV rays that may lead to malignant melanoma – even further complicating a mole that may be at-risk for becoming malignant. While no sunlight exposure is never recommended, women must pay particularly cessation attention to the types and amounts of UV exposure they receive as this will further complication early warning signs and screenings for melanoma.
Another interesting and growing risk for women is the continued exposure to tar, arsenic and even some pesticides. If you are a woman who works or lives in an region where these products are a potential exposure for you, your risk for developing malignant melanoma may be significantly greater than in women who are not exposed. When combined with UV exposure and moles, this makes for a triple combination that may even warrant regular and routine visits with a skin care specialist to monitor and track any changes in your skin’s condition over time.
Dermatologists, skin care specialists and even family practitioners will provide the best resources for you in terms of malignant melanoma prevention and reducing risks. While we typically do not concern ourselves with skin exposure issues, the fact is many women are suffering from increased risk for skin cancer and melanoma is often preventable or treatment when diagnosed early. Watch the look and feel of your moles, reduce your UV ray exposure, and limit access and exposure to pesticides and other chemicals. In the long term, this will provide the best possible procedure to prevent malignant melanoma from developing.
Sources: European Journal of Cancer, 43, 1067-1074.
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Filed under Malignant Mesothelioma by on Sep 12th, 2010.
published in Storytime Tapestry and Gather.com
Mesothelioma is a cancer with symptoms that can easily be mistaken for other ailments. Sometimes there are no symptoms at all. Pleural Mesothelioma found in the lungs and the linings of the lungs is the most celebrated form of mesothelioma and the symptoms of this type of mesothelioma is often mistaken for pneumonia. The right lung is more often affected than the left one in this deadly cancer.
Pleural effusion occurs as the main symptom of pleural mesothelioma. An effusion occurs when there is too much liquid forming in the lungs and surrounding areas. The cancer cells cause this excess fluid in the lungs. The fluid in the pleura can either be clear or cloudy. If it is clear it is called transudate effusion caused simply by the imbalance of fluid. If it cloudy it is exsudate effusion and this is the type associated with pleural mesothelioma. This cloudy color is a result of cancer cells and proteins in the diseased pleura.
There could also be fluid buildup in the abdomen as a result of Peritoneal Mesothelioma. The symptoms of this disease would include swelling of the abdomen, feet, ankles, abdominal pain, nausea, weight loss and bowel obstruction.
If a doctor suspects mesothelioma he/she will launch with taking the patient’s medical history as well as work history and any other information concerning possible exposure to asbestos or asbestos products. He/she will do a complete physical and order standard tests. He will initiate with listening to the chest with a stethoscope. Mesothelioma patients have different responses to exam. If the chest is tapped it will produce a shallow sound indicating fluid in the lungs and the heartbeat will be muffled rather than clear.
Standard exrays will hiss tumors in the lungs, and an exray called a lateral decubitus film will indicate effusion and also reveal how much liquid is present.
A needle biopsy called a Thoracentesis will extract some of the fluid to determine if it is a transudate or exsudate effusion in the pleura, while the same procedure can be done for peritoneal mesothelioma using a peritoneoscope. These types of needle biopsies do not conclusively proof the cancer is present and biopsies to remove tissue samples for further analysis is often required.
After the biopsies are taken they are sent on to pathology labs for analysis. These expert mesothelioma pathologists must first rule out any other invent of cancer before given the diagnosis of mesothelioma.
Computed Tomography (CT scans) are used not only used to reveal the presence of effusion but to locate fissures, scar tissue, calcification of tissue, tumors, and any protrusions in the cell walls.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) can calculate the size of the tumors, and lymph nodes. They can view different images in layers and are more refined at distinguishing tumors from other structures in the body. MRI’s are also outmoded to resolve if a patient is a good candidate for surgery.
Positron Emission Tomography (PET) will protest you how far advanced, and what stage the tumor is. It is the most sophisticated imagining tool but it is also the most expensive.
Staging:
Mesothelioma staging analyzes various factors of the tumor reveal. It will recall into account the size of tumors, the numbers of tumors present, the place of tumors in relation to the its point of origin, if there are lymph nodes present, and cancer cell formation. They will also predict if the cancer will spread to other parts of the body.
There are 5 cancer-staging classifications:
In situ – the cancer has remained in its novel location, in the same layer of cells
Localized – the cancer stays in the original organ
Regional – the cancer has spread to the nearby organs or lymph nodes
Distant – the cancer has spread to other parts of the body
Unknown – not enough information is available to access the cancer at this time.
Besides the above mentioned testing, additional tests such as urine samples, blood tests, tissue samples, and pathology reports will all be used to determine the cancer staging.
The three staging systems in use today are the Butchart system, the TMN system and the Brigham System. The TMN, surpasses the older Butchart system because it not only measures the size and location of the tumor, it determines lymph node involvement and predicts if the cancer has the ability to travel. The Brigham System will analyze the lymph nodes to determine if surgery will be suitable for the patient at this time.
Staging is very crucial to aid the doctors in determining the proper treatment plan needed in each individual case.
Treatment can mean simply draining the fluid, to provide symptom relief, radiation and chemotherapy, surgery to remove part of, or the whole tumor, or palliative care, when the patient is terminal and no treatment can cure the disease or arrest the disease.
Newer treatments offered today include acupuncture in conjunction with standard treatment, drug therapy, immunotherapy (treating the immune system), Photodynamic therapy (PDT) a type of light therapy designed to destroy the cancer cell with light, gene therapy, and more.
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Filed under Mesothelioma Diagnosis by on Sep 13th, 2010.
This disease is regarded as one of the most severe types as it has claimed thousands of lives in the United States alone every year. Although frightful, this should be enough of a cause to keep yourself alert when it comes to indications of stomach cancer symptoms. It’s the second most common type, trailing closely behind the lung variety.
Most symptoms actually bear strong resemblance to those of a hiatal hernia or peptic ulcer. This can start out with stomach pains that are only aggravated by food, along with heartburn, indigestion, and nausea. Of course, at this point, most of these symptoms are easily dismissed and can sometimes be momentarily remedied by an antacid. The only bad thing about this is that this sort of reaction only leads to delaying a routine check up, and can leave the tumor to wreak havoc.
A loss of appetite or feeling full even after a exiguous meal can also be placed under stomach cancer symptoms. Along with this can near upper abdominal worry, weight loss, and the steady bloating of the stomach after meals. In more extreme cases, vomiting blood or blood being found in the feces can also occur. This isn’t usually the rich red colored fresh blood, but shadowy blood. If left unattended over a certain period of time, this could lead to anemia.
Although some of these symptoms can also be symptoms of a stomach virus or gastric ulcer, if you have even the slightest feeling that it could be cancerous, then go to your doctor. This will require an examination both from a gastroenterologist and an oncologist.
The risk of acquiring these stomach cancer symptoms becomes significantly higher when things like age begin to factor in. This disease is more common amongst people close to the age of sixty. Gender can also approach into play as men are more likely to develop it than women. A diet that primarily consists of salty food prepared by smoking or curing is also something to take note off. Smoking can also trigger it since every time you inhale, you end up swallowing a small amount of tobacco smoke
There are ten times more cases in Japan and the United States. Unlike other countries, the number of cases in the United States during the period declined. The exact cause of stomach cancer has escaped from researchers. But they have found risk factors that increase your chances of developing this disease. Research has shown that diets rich in salt and nitrates, can increase the likelihood of developing stomach cancer. There are a limited number of cases among native Japanese who moved to the United States and adopted the American diet, compared with those who had stayed in Japan and to continue with the Japanese diet. There are a number of cases among people who work as miners or construction of wood, nickel and rubber. People exposed to H. pylori developed gastric lymphoma.
At the time, these different symptoms can occur in cancer metastasis to other organs such as the esophagus, lungs, lymph nodes, liver, small intestine and colon. Unfortunately, it takes eight to ninety percent of patients with stomach cancer.
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Filed under Mesothelioma Symptoms by on Sep 14th, 2010.