Malignant mesothelioma is a rare cancer of the lining of the lung (pleural mesothelioma) or the lining of the abdomen (peritoneal mesothelioma). The only known cause of mesothelioma in the U.S. is exposure to asbestos. Mesothelioma has a long latency period, the time between first exposure to asbestos and the diagnosis of the disease. In rare cases the latency period has been as short as 10 to 15 years after the first exposure to asbestos; however, generally mesothelioma occurs between 20 and 40 or more years after an individual’s …

Treatment of malignant mesothelioma can be very difficult for a wide variety of reasons. First and foremost, mesothelioma can be difficult to correctly diagnose and may not show up in a patient for decades. This can create problems for treatment because with mesothelioma, as with all cancers, treatment is more difficult the longer the disease has been allowed to progress. In addition to the difficulties created by delayed treatment of mesothelioma, the disease often does not respond to traditional cancer treatments, further complicating treatment. Also, the organs that are …