Mesothelioma is a difficult disease to diagnose for a several reasons. First, there is an extended time period between the exposure to asbestos and the onset of the disease, which can be as long as 50 or 60 years. Patients do not often not think to tell their doctors about working at an asbestos-related job.
Next, the typical symptoms of mesothelioma - shortness of breath and coughing - are also symptoms of many other types of lung problems, both cancerous and non-cancerous. Therefore, if a person has these symptoms, it does not necessarily indicate the presence of the mesothelioma.
Finally, many types of tumors can exist in the serous cavities that are not mesothelioma. The other types of tumors can be non-cancerous that originate in the tissues of the serous membranes, or they can be tumors that have migrated from other organs with cancerous growths.
X-rays and other types of imaging technologies are used to detect tumors in the body, and a growth in the chest cavity will appear on an X-ray or MRI. These devices, however, cannot directly determine the type of cancer, whether the tumor is mesothelioma or originates from some other source.
In order to diagnose cancer, a biopsy is needed. This biopsy then undergoes diagnostic histopathology. Electron microscopy is considered the highest standard for evaluating tumor material from a biopsy. It is a highly advanced microscope that allows viewing of the tiniest elements of cell tissue.
To detect the disease, a pathologist places the tumor cells in the electron microscope and then views the structure of the individual cells. Mesothelioma cells have a specific shape and pattern, and this allows them to be identified. Mesothelioma cells also look similar to other types of cancer cells, such as adenocarcinoma cells, which can make identification very difficult. Even with the electron microscope, the different types of mesothelioma cells — epithelioid, sarcomatoid and biphasic — can be confused with other types of cancer cells.
Due to diagnostic confusion, research is underway to find new methods for diagnosing cancer. One method is to evaluate the types of compounds generated by the cancer cells. Reactions have long been used to distinguish between mesothelial and other types of tumor cells. Unfortunately, other types of cells in the body also produce these compounds.
Recently, because of the difficulty in diagnosing malignant mesothelioma, research has concentrated on finding new ways to detect the presence of the disease. Researchers in Australia have found that a certain protein increases in patients with mesothelioma. These researchers have suggested that a test for the presence this protein in the blood could represent a useful marker for the diagnosis and disease progression. They feel that this type of a diagnosis tool could lead to earlier detection, and therefore more effective treatment.
One of the most striking findings of the research is that several asbestos-exposed people who tested positive for this protein were diagnosed with mesothelioma within 3 years. They suggested that evaluation of this protein may help identify people at risk for the deadly disease. Also, they found that this protein's levels increase as mesothelioma progresses, suggesting that protein evaluation could be used to track the progression of the disease as well.
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