Mesothelioma is a rare cancer of the chest and abdominal membranes that almost never occurs without exposure to asbestos. Mesothelioma can spread rapidly over the surface of the lungs, abdominal organs and heart.
Symptoms can include cough, shortness of breath, weight loss, excessive sweating and chest pain.
Some treatments that have been used with patients include radiation, chemotherapy and surgery. Patients often use oxygen and pain medication such as morphine to reduce the symptoms of the disease, which is currently incurable. Asbestosis is a serious, chronic, non-cancerous respiratory disease. Asbestosis is a chronic disease of the lungs which makes breathing progressively more difficult and can lead to death. There is no effective treatment for asbestosis and the disease can be disabling or fatal.