Clincal and Lab Results After Mesothelioma Diagnosis May Help Predict Prognosis
Dicle University researchers in Diyarbakir, Turkey have found that knowing certain clinical and laboratory results for mesothelioma patients may help predict which individuals will have a better or worse prognosis for the cancer.
The research team reviewed medical records for 363 patients who had been diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma over a 20-year period and found that the thickening of the lining of the lung, when exceeding one centimeter, the presence of plural fluid and a high level of C-reactive protein in the patient’s blood indicated a poor prognosis.
The study, recently published in peer review journal Respiration, confirms previous research in Japan that indicated a high C-reactive protein level and a high white blood cell count is associated with high mortality in mesothelioma patients.
Hopefully, this research can help mesothelioma patients better understand their cancer and find the best possible avenues to beat the disease. The severity of this asbestos cancer is linked to previous asbestos exposure that may have occurred 20, 30, 40 or more years ago.
