Malignant Pleura Mesothelioma is a tertiary disease that attacks and debilitates the protective lining around the lungs. The most deadly of three forms of mesothelioma, it accounts for 75 to 95 percent of all mesothelioma cases. There is no cure for this unforgiving and merciless illness. Researchers have discovered a new way of slowing the process down for patient that are diagnosed. Dr. Robert Cameron of UCLA has created “ systemic therapies. Systemic therapies affect the entire body in hopes of killing the cancer and localized treatments that specifically target the tumors. It is a rare disease, and many who affected by it are usually go undiagnosed or are misdiagnosed due to the fact that the disease shares many of the same respiratory symptoms as other ailments. According to researchers at UCLA, 90% of all Pleura Mesothelioma patients claim to have come in contact with asbestos at some point in time. It could take from 20 to 50 years to experience symptoms after exposure to asbestos. The life expectancy of someone who has been diagnosed with this deadly disease is 18 to 24 months.

Gene therapy is the newer type treatment being tested on mesothelioma. Gene therapy add new genes to cancer cells makes the easier to kill. This treatment also slow down the process. Dr. Robert Cameron wants to passed this new cancer vaccines which aims at getting the immune systems to attack the cancer. This cancer vaccine would not cure the disease, only slow the cancer cells down from speading. Asbestos mining became a lucrative industry in the early to middle 19th Century. Some uses for asbestos were to produce fire retardant materials such as ceiling insulation, pipe insulation, acid resistant gaskets, fireplace bricking, as well as a various number of other industrial and domestic uses. Although slaves who worked asbestos mines had been dying for years, the 1st documented death related to asbestos happened in 1906. During this time researchers had started to notice an increasing number of early deaths and acute respiratory cases in asbestos mining towns. In spite of this alarming discovery, the production of asbestos laced products continued. With the continuation of mass production of asbestos products the death toll of asbestos related deaths continued to climb. By the 1930s the dangers of asbestos related jobs had impacted the United Kingdom to the point that the English Parliament demanded an investigation. The investigation concluded that the illnesses were directly linked to prolonged exposure to and breathing in asbestos dust particles. This prompted industry regulations both in the UK and in America to mandate the use of respirators when working with or around asbestos in 1931. The term mesothelioma was 1st used in 1932 to replace or use in conjunction with the term asbestosis. Throughout the next 3 decades asbestos was continually used in developing sheet rock, plaster, gas mask filters, roofing tar, shingles, brake pads, casts, as well as various other products. In the mid to late 1980s public health concerns again focused on potential risk factors surrounding asbestos fibers. [pic]
This time, focus was placed on respiratory illnesses of people who worked or went to school in places that were constructed of asbestos manufactured materials. The findings of the Health Effects Institute of Cambridge in Massachusetts’ research led to the destruction and reconstruction not only across America but world wide. Many schools and businesses were deemed uninhabitable due to the potential risk of mesothelioma, and various other lung ailments. As a direct result of that deconstruction period, Tertiary Prevention Centers have reported many workers of those various work sites 30 years ago are being diagnosed with Mesothelioma. As 2014, 750 million dollars have been paid out in lawsuit to exposure victims. In conclusion, mesothelioma is a horrific invisible beast that has ruined hundreds of thousands of lives. Many regulations have been put in place to ensure the safe handling and use of asbestos; however The United Stated is one of a hand full of countries that have not fully banned asbestos products. It is imperative that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) do its part in eliminating the production of asbestos laden products and keep them from being shipped to U.S. borders.
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