Mesothelioma Symptoms: Early Signs & Warning Signals
Mesothelioma symptoms can overlap with common, less serious illnesses. This makes early cancer detection hard. Recognizing potential warning signs is a key first step. Knowing your history of asbestos exposure is vital, as symptoms can take 20 to 60 years to appear after the first exposure.
Expertise
Mr. Wasserberg is proud to call himself a Trial Lawyer. He is often a featured speaker at industry summits and gatherings of the nation’s leading attorneys, from both sides of the bar. He is recognized by both his peers and his adversaries and is considered one of the nation’s premier mesothelioma and negligence attorneys
Content written by Dan Wasserberg
- Expertise
Mr. Wasserberg is proud to call himself a Trial Lawyer. He is often a featured speaker at industry summits and gatherings of the nation’s leading attorneys, from both sides of the bar. He is recognized by both his peers and his adversaries and is considered one of the nation’s premier mesothelioma and negligence attorneys
Experienced Mesothelioma Attorney
What Are the Symptoms of Mesothelioma?
The most common mesothelioma symptoms are fatigue and pain around the site of the tumor. Tumors that form in the lining of the lungs, abdomen, heart or testicles can cause symptoms specific to these areas of the body. But there are also some general signs that all types of mesothelioma share.
Common Mesothelioma Symptoms
- Fatigue: Feeling extremely tired all the time, even after resting.
- Fever and Night Sweats: Unexplained fevers that come and go with heavy sweating at night.
- Loss of Appetite: Not feeling hungry, which can lead to unexpected weight loss.
- Pain: General pain or swelling in the area of the tumor.
These general symptoms are often the first warning signs. Because they’re so general, they’re easily mistaken for other diseases like flu, COPD, heart disease or irritable bowel syndrome or other cancers.
Pleural Mesothelioma Symptoms
The most common symptoms of pleural mesothelioma are cough and pain. The cough usually becomes persistent, worsening over time. The main symptoms happen because fluid builds up in the chest and the tumor presses on the lung, making it hard to breathe. This mesothelioma type affects the tissue around the lungs.
Pleural Mesothelioma Symptoms
- Chest Pain: A sharp or dull pain under the rib cage.
- Cough: A persistent cough that does not go away.
- Difficulty Swallowing: Feeling like food is stuck in your throat.
- Lumps Under the Skin: Small, painful lumps can form on the chest.
- Shortness of Breath: Feeling winded even after light activity or while resting.
- Unexplained Weight Loss: Losing weight without effort.
In early stages, a person might only have a dry cough or feel a little short of breath after walking. As the cancer grows, these symptoms can get worse. In more severe cases, the tumor can press on the spinal cord or other parts of the body, causing severe pain or numbness. Peritoneal mesothelioma is the most common type of this, making up approximately 75% of all cases.
Peritoneal Mesothelioma Symptoms
Because peritoneal mesothelioma happens in the lining of the abdomen, the most common symptoms are belly pain and nausea. This mesothelioma type can cause different symptoms than pleural, such as a buildup of fluid in the abdomen, called ascites.
Peritoneal Mesothelioma Symptoms
- Abdominal Pain: General pain or cramping in the stomach area.
- Bowel Changes: Constipation, diarrhea, or a feeling that the bowel is not fully emptying.
- Nausea and Vomiting: Feeling sick to your stomach and throwing up.
- Swelling in the Abdomen: The stomach area may look larger or feel hard to the touch.
- Unexplained Weight Loss: Losing weight in other parts of the body even if the abdomen is enlarged with fluid.
In early stages, a person might notice their pants feel tighter or they feel full after eating only a small amount. As the cancer gets worse, fluid buildup can cause pain and discomfort. The tumor can also grow large enough to press on other organs, causing serious bowel problems or hernias.
Pericardial Mesothelioma Symptoms
The most common early signs of pericardial mesothelioma are chest pain and trouble breathing. It forms in the tissue around the heart. This type is hard to find early because its symptoms can seem like many other heart diseases and it’s very rare.
Pericardial Mesothelioma Symptoms
- Chest Pain: A sharp pain in the chest, often under the breastbone.
- Heart Palpitations: Feeling like your heart is fluttering, pounding, or beating too fast.
- Murmurs: A whooshing sound in the heart that a doctor can hear with a stethoscope.
- Shortness of Breath: Trouble breathing, especially when lying down.
- Swelling: Fluid buildup in the legs or around the heart.
Because the tumor is so close to the heart, any growth can put pressure on it. As the disease gets worse, this pressure can make it hard for the heart to pump blood, leading to heart failure or fluid around the heart that needs to be drained (pericardiocentesis).
Testicular Mesothelioma Symptoms
The most common sign is a painless lump or swelling. Because the symptoms are not painful and seem minor, people often delay seeing a doctor.
Testicular Mesothelioma Symptoms
- Fluid Buildup: A painless buildup of fluid in the scrotum.
- Lump or Swelling: A hard lump or general swelling in the testicle.
While this type is rare, it often has a better outlook than other forms because it is usually found earlier. This is the rarest form of mesothelioma. It starts in the lining of the testicles. It’s often found during surgery for something else like hernia.
Are There Early Warning Signs of Mesothelioma?
Early warning signs of mesothelioma aren’t unique to this cancer. They often start as mild issues like a dry cough, a little chest pain, or feeling more tired than usual. Because these signs are so mild, most people don’t think much of them until the symptoms get worse.
A major reason this cancer is hard to catch early is that the first symptoms don’t appear until the disease is in later stages. It can take decades after asbestos exposure for a tumor to grow large enough to cause any noticeable problems. This is why knowing your history of asbestos exposure is so important. If you know you were exposed to asbestos in the past, notify your doctor. They may suggest regular screenings, such as chest X-rays or CT scans, to look for signs of cancer before you ever feel a symptom.
Why Early Symptoms Are Easy to Miss
Early mesothelioma symptoms are easy to miss because they look and feel like many common, less serious illnesses. This often leads to patients being misdiagnosed. A doctor might treat them for a cold or the flu, and the real problem isn’t found until months later.
Conditions with Similar Symptoms
- Asthma: Wheezing, coughing, chest tightness, and shortness of breath.
- Flu: Chest pain, fatigue, persistent cough, shortness of breath, wheezing.
- Hernia: A visible lump or swelling, pain in the groin or abdomen.
- IBS: Abdominal pain, bloating, constipation, and diarrhea.
- Pneumonia: Fever, chills, a cough that produces phlegm, chest pain.
Many patients see several doctors over many months before they get a correct diagnosis. A person with pleural mesothelioma might be treated for pneumonia for months before a scan displays the real cause. The non-specific early symptoms like fatigue, weight loss and general pain are a big reason for this delay in diagnosis.
Monitoring Mesothelioma Symptoms
Once a person is diagnosed, keep a close watch for symptoms in order to plan their care and treatment. Monitoring helps the medical team see if treatments are working and if the disease is in remission.
Monitoring Methods
- Blood tests: Tests that look for specific markers in the blood that can indicate how the disease is progressing or regressing.
- Imaging scans: CT scans are the main tool used to track tumor size. PET-CT scans help find if the cancer has spread to other parts of the body. These are usually done every few months.
- Physical exams: Regular checkups with the doctor to feel for lumps, listen to the lungs and heart, and check for fluid buildup.
- Symptom journal: A daily log where the person writes down how they feel, any new symptoms, and how bad existing ones are.
It’s very helpful to keep a journal of your own symptoms. Write down when a new symptom starts, if a current symptom gets worse, and how it affects your daily life. This information is valuable for your treatment team. Report any changes to your care team right away so they can be addressed quickly.
Managing Mesothelioma Symptoms
The goal of symptom management is to reduce pain and discomfort and improve quality of life. Treatments focus on two main things: shrinking the tumor and directly treating the symptoms.
Therapies and Approaches for Symptom Relief
- Chemotherapy: This treatment uses drugs to shrink tumors, which can relieve pressure on organs and reduce pain.
- Palliative care: A team of specialists focusing on managing pain and other symptoms, helping people feel better during treatment.
- Paracentesis: A procedure where a thin needle is used to remove fluid from the abdomen. It provides quick relief from pain and bloating caused by ascites.
- Pleurodesis: A procedure that creates an artificial adhesion in the chest cavity to cause the lung lining to stick to the chest wall to prevent fluid from building up in the chest. This eliminates the space where fluid collects.
- Thoracentesis: This procedure uses a needle to remove fluid from the chest cavity, making it easier to breathe.
Mesothelioma treatment protocols that reduce tumor size often give the most lasting relief. A good care plan uses a mix of these methods to manage symptoms at every stage. Many of these approaches can be used to provide relief quickly.
Mesothelioma Symptoms vs. Treatment Side Effects
There can be some overlap between the symptoms of the disease and the side effects of treatment. Fatigue is a common symptom of mesothelioma, but it is also a well-known side effect of chemotherapy. This can make it hard to tell what is causing the problem.
The key difference is timing. Symptoms of the disease are usually there before treatment starts. Side effects happen after a treatment, like chemo, radiation or surgery. For instance, a person might have chest pain from the tumor, but then have a new, different kind of pain at the incision site after surgery.
Managing symptoms vs side effects can be different. A doctor might treat disease-related pain with a painkiller. A side effect like nausea from chemo might be treated with Zofran (ondansetron ), an anti-nausea medication. It’s normal to feel worried that treating one problem might create another. Your care team’s goal is to manage both the cancer and adverse symptoms. Treatments can be adjusted to help you feel your best while fighting the disease. Being open with your doctor about how you are feeling helps them give you the best care.
Mesothelioma Symptoms FAQs
How are mesothelioma symptoms different from lung cancer symptoms?
Lung cancer forms in the lung tissue itself and often causes a cough that brings up blood. Mesothelioma forms in the lining around the lung, so its main symptoms are usually fluid buildup in the chest and a sharp, stabbing chest pain, rather than coughing up blood.
Are mesothelioma symptoms sometimes mistaken for asbestosis?
Early mesothelioma symptoms are sometimes mistaken for asbestosis. Asbestos causes both diseases and can lead to shortness of breath and a persistent cough. Asbestosis is a chronic disease that causes lung scarring, but it’s not cancer. Because the symptoms are so similar, doctors often use scans/images to differentiate and confirm a correct mesothelioma diagnosis.
Can mesothelioma symptoms come and go?
In the early stages, symptoms can come and go. A person might feel chest pain one day and feel fine the next. They might have a cough for a few weeks that seems to get better, only to have it return. This can be misleading and is one reason why diagnosis is often delayed. As the disease progresses, the symptoms usually become more consistent and severe.
Is it possible to have mesothelioma without any noticeable symptoms at all?
It’s possible, especially in the very early stages. In some cases, mesothelioma is found during a routine X-ray or a scan for another health issue. This is one reason why people with a known history of asbestos exposure are encouraged to have regular checkups, as the cancer can be present without causing any obvious warning signs.
Can stress affect mesothelioma symptoms?
Stress doesn’t cause the physical symptoms of mesothelioma, but it can make them feel worse. When a person is stressed, they might feel more tired, have more muscle tension, or have a harder time breathing. Managing stress through rest, talking to loved ones, or getting support from a counselor can help a person feel better overall.
Does exercise or physical activity help or worsen mesothelioma symptoms?
Light to moderate physical activity is often helpful, as it can boost energy, improve mood, and help with breathing. The key is to talk to your doctor before starting any exercise. They can help you find a safe level of activity. Pushing too hard can make symptoms worse, but staying gently active is usually a positive part of symptom management.
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