Types of Mesothelioma

The Different Types / Stages Of Mesothelioma

There are two main types of Mesothelioma: Pleural, which affects the lungs and the lining of the chest wall, and the less common Peritoneal, which affects the lining of the abdomen. In both cases there are four different types of cancer cells that can cause the issues. These are as follows:

Epithelioid – these are the most common cells which grow more slowly than others, meaning that they can in some cases respond better to treatment than other types.

Biphasic – these cells can be less responsive to treatment than Epithelioid and hence the outcome for sufferers is less positive.

Sacromatoid – these are the least responsive to treatment, they are less common than Epithelioid, and they have a propensity to grow much more quickly.

Desmoplastic – these cells are a variant of Sacromatoid Mesothelioma but can commonly be misdiagnosed as a benign tumour due to the fibrous nature of the cell variations.

Grades
There are different grades of cancer which tell you how much the cells look like normal cells. These are:

• Grade 1 – these calls look most like normal, healthy cells.
• Grade 2 – these look similar to normal cells.
• Grade 3 – these cells look very abnormal, very unlike healthy cells.

Stages
When a doctor investigates a patient with cancer, they look for the stage to which the cancer has developed. They look for where the cancer is growing, how big the cancer is, and whether it has spread into other areas of the body. Knowing the stage of the cancer can help the doctor decide on the best method of treatment.

In the UK the most common staging system is called the International Mesothelioma Interest Group (IMIG) system. This is based on the Tumour, Node and Metastasis (TNM) system which looks at the size and position of the tumour, whether the cells have spread to nearby lymph nodes, and whether the cells have spread to other parts of the body.

There are four stages:

Stage 1 – where the Mesothelioma cells are found in the pleura either on the inside or outside of one side of the chest, but not having spread into the lung.

Stage 2 – where it has spread to both layers of the pleura on one side of the body or has started to spread in to the lung tissue.

Stage 3 – at this stage the disease has spread to the chest wall or the lymph nodes on the same side of the body but still could potentially be removed by surgery.

Stage 4 – at this stage the cancer has spread into different parts of the chest, or even grown through the diaphragm and into the lymph nodes on both sides of the body, or into other parts of the body. At this stage it is not possible to remove the tumour through surgery.

Contact us today for free, no obligation advice regarding your Mesothelioma claim – either by calling us free on 0800 028 2060, or by requesting a free call back, whereby one of our team will contact you at a time of your choice, to discuss your situation.

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