Saturday, December 6, 2008

How Common Is Mesothelioma?

A problem in determining mesothelioma incidence is that it has not always been accurately diagnosed. Many cases have been thought to be another form of lung cancer called adenocarcinoma of the lung, which looks very similar.

However, there is much agreement that diagnoses of mesothelioma increased between the mid-1970s and mid to late-1980s, and is now thought to be somewhere between seven and forty per million people in Western countries. In 1980 U.S. death rates from mesothelioma litigation maryland were approximately 2,000 per year, and by the late 1990s, they were at about 3,000 per year.

Between 1973 and 1984, pleural (lung) mesothelioma cases increased threefold in white males but remained steady among females. It most often occurs in males but can occur in anyone, even in children.

Asbestos Exposure

Between 1940 and 1979, about 27.5 million Americans were exposed to asbestos in their work place. Most often this is a background factor in those who are diagnosed with mesothelioma, but not always, as some people with mesothelioma have had no exposure to asbestos. However, incidence of mesothelioma among the family members of those who worked around it is higher than in the general population. The asbestos fibers were unwittingly brought home in the worker’s clothing and hair so that they contaminated the home and endangered the family.

Incidence Peaking

Many studies have been done and continue to be done on mesothelioma. It is thought now that mesothelioma incidence may have peaked and will decline to an ongoing level of about 500 cases each year.

The U.S. National Cancer Institute (NCI) has been assembling annual statistics on mesothelioma incidence since 1973. According to the NCI, the rise in numbers of cases corresponds to the rise and subsequent decline in use of asbestos in industry and its associated effects on workers. The decline in mesothelioma cases has been noticed since the early 1990s.

In Britain the figures form a pattern which will peak around the year 2020, as the maximum exposure to workers occurred in the 1970s. In the U.S. it occurred in the 1950s.

Male Age Breakdown

Statistics show that beginning in 1973, mesothelioma increased sharply in incidence for males aged 55 and up.

· After 1983, incidence flattened out for males aged 55 to 74

· After 1989, incidence flattened out for males aged 75 and up

· Males aged between 45 and 54 had no increase in incidence and remained relatively low

The greatest number of mesothelioma litigation maryland cases has always been in males aged 75 or more. The second greatest number of cases has been among males aged 65 to 74. The age brackets of 55 to 64 and 45 to 54 have never spiked as high as the higher age brackets.

In the U.S. increased awareness of the dangers of asbestos combined with the U.S. government regulations and guidance programs has greatly reduced worker exposure. Exposure is projected to remain low and to keep mesothelioma risk low in the future.

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Friday, December 5, 2008

The Numbers Behind Student Loan Consolidation

Student Loan Consolidation combines several student or parent loans into one bigger loan from a single lender, which is then used to pay off the balances on the other loans. Consolidation loans are available for most federal loans, including FFELP (Stafford, PLUS and SLS), FISL, Perkins, Health Professional Student Loans, NSL, HEAL, Guaranteed Student Loans and Direct loans. Some lenders offer consolidation loans for private loans as well.


Consolidation loans often reduce the size of the monthly payment by extending the term of the loan beyond the 10-year repayment plan that is standard with federal loans. Dependin
g on the loan amount, the term of the loan can be extended from 12 to 30 years. (10 years for less than $7,500; 12 years for $7,500 to $10,000; 15 years for $10,000 to $20,000; 20 years for $20,000 to $40,000; 25 years for $40,000 to $60,000; and 30 years for $60,000 and above.) The reduction in the monthly payment may make the loan easier to repay for some borrowers.

In a number of circumstances, such as when one or more of the loans was being repaid in less than 10 years because of minimum payment requirements, a consolidation loan may reduce the monthly payment without extending the overall loan term beyond 10 years. In effect, the shorter-term loan is being extended a full decade. The total amount of interest paid will increase unless you continue to make the same monthly payment as before, in which case the total
amount of interest paid will decrease.

The interest rate on consolidation loans is the weighted average of the interest rates on th
e loans being consolidated, rounded up to the nearest one eighth of a percent and capped at 8.25%.

If a student consolidates their loans before they enter repayment, the interest rate used is the lower in-school interest rate. Although the rounding up of the weighted average can potentially cost the student as much as 0.12%, a student who consolidates before entering repayment can save as much as 0.6%, a substantial net savings.

Now you know about student loan consolidation. Check this blog for new posts to help you better understand the student loan consolidation process.

Causes Of Mesothelioma

Between 70% to 80% of all cases of mesothelioma involve patients who have a history of exposure to asbestos at work. Mesothelioma is a cancer caused by inhaling or ingesting asbestos particles, and usually presents as a pleural mesothelioma, or a mass located in the membranes that line the lungs. About 20% of mesothelioma patients have peritoneal mesothelioma, which is located in the lining of the abdomen
that encases several abdominal organs.

The mesothelia are membranes that encase the lungs, the heart, or most organs in the abdomen. They consist of two layers, the parietal layer that lines the chest cavity, or the abdominal cavity, and the visceral layer that lines the individual organs. The mesothelia produce a serous fluid between their layers that provide a layer of lubrication on which they glide, allowing the organs within to move freely.

Mesothelioma is a tumor, or mass, that grows in response to many years of irritation and inflammation caused by asbestos fibers that lodge in a mesothilial layer of either the lung or peritoneum. It begins in just one layer of the mesothilia, and usually in the pleura, on one side of the chest. This slow-growing cancer can take up to 50 years to manifest as mesothelioma litigation maryland and produce enough symptoms that the affected person seeks medical help.

Smoking and Mesothelioma

While smoking does not appear to increase the risk of getting mesothelioma, nor does it cause mesothelioma, it significantly increases the risk of getting lung cancer. Lung cancer is a cancer located within the lung tissue, specifically in the lung’s airways. Asbestos has not been shown to cause cancer within the lung tissue. Its sharp, rigid strands move through the soft lung tissue to the pleura, where they become trapped. Asbestos particles that lodge in the lung tissue can cause another serious disease, asbestosis. Asbestosis causes fibrotic changes to the lung that stiffens the lung tissue. The presence of fibrotic lung disease further restricts breathing capacity.

While smoking does not cause mesothelioma, when combined with asbestos exposure it significantly increases the risk of getting lung cancer. The increased risk is not just additive, but synergistic. These terms mean that the risk of getting lung cancer from this combination is more than the sum of the individual risks added together.

Evidence shows that if you have been exposed to asbestos, especially in the work place, you can significantly reduce your risk of getting lung cancer if you quit smoking.

Treatment of mesothelioma litigation maryland varies by stage ranging from surgery, radiation and clinical trial in Stage I, to draining the excess fluid from the chest or abdomen, palliative surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, or a clinical trial of a combination of these treatments.

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Thursday, December 4, 2008

Asbestos Mesothelioma Cancer

Mesothelioma is one of the most uncommon forms of cancer. It generally affects the lungs, heart or abdominal organs. The most common form of this disease is pleural mesothelioma. The pleuron is a slight membrane between the chest cavity and the lungs. The lubrication it gives does not allow the lungs to get grazed when they come in contact with the chest wall. Pleural mesothelioma is also known as ""lung"" cancer. Peritoneal mesothelioma is another form of mesothelioma. The membrane that envelops the abdomen’s organs is known as the peritoneum. While it is less common than pleural mesothelioma, peritoneal houston lawyer mesothelioma asbestos is more invasive and consequently more fatal for the patient.


Mesotheliomas are either easily curable or malignant. The most widespread form of mesothelioma is the “diffuse malignant pleural mesothelioma”. This tumor is invasive and destructive. It characteristically spreads quickly to the lungs’ surface, heart or abdominal organs. Life expectancy for patients afflicted by this cancer usually ranges between four months to two years. Of course, that depends a lot on myriad factors, like the stage of the disease’s detection, the patient’s health etc. With appropriate care, some patients have survived for a number of years.

Early diagnosis and surgery may elongate life expectancy. Surgery may not be a feasible option, however, for older or weaker patients. Radiation treatment and chemotherapy can help in the overall program. Home care and pain management are other alternatives during the later stages of the malignancy.

Automobile mechanics, painters, plasterers, pipe fitters, plumbers, shipyard workers and welders, to name a few, are in regular contact with asbestos and thus in greater danger of getting the disease than individuals of other professions.

Generally, it is believed that sustained exposure to houston lawyer mesothelioma asbestos is more liable to give one mesothelioma. However, some individuals with short but severe exposures have developed this malignancy. Also, a person can get this disease indirectly. Women, while washing the clothes of men (son, husband) who work with asbestos, can develop the cancer.

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Wednesday, December 3, 2008

Mesothelioma Asbestos Diseases

The most common diseases caused by asbestos are asbestosis and pleural disease. The most general forms of asbestos cancer are mesothelioma and lung cancer. The former is also occasionally called mesothelioma cancer or simply “meso”.

Asbestos dust is also responsible for numerous types of throat cancer, including pharyngeal cancer, esophageal cancer, and laryngeal cancer. Stomach and colon cancer are two other types of cancer related to houston lawyer mesothelioma asbestos.

It is vital to note that the latency period, which is the period between actually being in contact with the mineral and the onset of asbestos cancer or a disease related to asbestos, can be quite long. In some cases, it can be over 50 years after an individual’s first contact with asbestos that symptoms of asbestos cancer or any other asbestos disease is seen. Owing to this latency period, individuals exposed to this mineral decades back are still in jeopardy, today, to catch this illness. A trained medical professional can correctly conclude whether a person has asbestos disease or asbestos cancer. It is prudent for anybody working with asbestos to frequently consult a medical professional.

Asbestosis is another well-known disease caused by inhaling high volumes of asbestos fibers. Protracted gathering of fibers in the lungs can lead to the scarring of lung tissues. The most common complaint by a person who has contracted asbestosis is shortness of breath upon exertion. This condition is also called dyspnea. Also, a dry cough becomes more bothersome as the disease progresses. Asbestosis can lead to many other lung diseases, particularly pneumonia, that has a propensity to target weakened lungs. Furthermore, for individuals with asbestosis, the chances of getting lung cancer are multiplied by about 5 times.

Mesothelioma Asbestos provides detailed information on houston lawyer mesothelioma asbestos, Mesothelioma Asbestos Diseases, Mesothelioma Asbestos Treatment, Asbestos Mesothelioma Cancer and more.

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Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Peritoneal Mesothelioma And The Risks Of Asbestos Exposure

Asbestos related disease is responsible for 30 deaths per day, or 10,000 deaths per year. Asbestos diseases kill thousands more people than other types of cancers that get much more attention from the government and pharmaceutical companies. In addition, all asbestos exposed individuals should discuss smoking cessation efforts with their physicians as smoking can compound the effects of asbestos, increasing the risk of developing an asbestos related disease . Smokers have a significantly higher risk of contracting an asbestos related disease than non-smokers.

As many as 1 in 100 men over the age of 40 in this country will develop a malignant asbestos related disease, as well as an increasing number of women. Therefore, even workers who did not work directly with asbestos, but worked within the "breathing zone " of its use or removal run the risk of developing an asbestos related disease. However the most prevalent asbestos related disease is benign pleural disease.

Its hard to deny the health risks of exposure to loose asbestos fibres have been observed in Europe and somewhere else for a significantly long time. Frequently a long time period elapses between exposure to the poison and diagnosis of a related sickness. Often , as in the case of cancer, many decades may pass before the disease would appear.

Asbestos Exposure Risks

Asbestos related illnesses usually affect folk who worked for long times of time in professions where asbestos was used, and their families ( due to secondary asbestos exposure ). Potential mesothelioma asbestos exposure can also happen at colleges, houses and public buildings if asbestos products have fallen into disrepair or become damaged. Even some unpaved roads might be covered with asbestos containing serpentine.

A variety of job sites, ranging from shipyards to chemical and power plants to oil refineries, bear a history of asbestos exposure. If you think you've been exposed to asbestos and have developed mesothelioma you should seek houston lawyer mesothelioma asbestos firms for more information on how you can receive compensation.

Public awareness about the superiority of asbestos-related illness and the perils of asbestos exposure should be better documented. There should be a re-emphasis on the necessity to reduce health hazards for men and girls who may be exposed occupationally to asbestos.

The sicknesses due to asbestos don't appear till fifteen to forty years after your first exposure. This is named the "latency period." Even if you feel healthy whilst you are working with asbestos, you may get sick several years after. Asbestos related illness exposure remains a major source of illness. However, millions of Americans who have recently been exposed to houston lawyer mesothelioma asbestos will continue to suffer from its effects.

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Monday, December 1, 2008

Asbestos Mesothelioma Lawsuit Analysis And Opinion

After completing my medical degree in India I came back home to Los Angeles to complete my medical education through residency. During my time back I began online research into areas of interest mainly related to oncology. Mesothelioma was a disease that I had first hand information on due to a close family member suffering from this disease. So this influenced me into creating a website DailyMesothelioma.com that would explain and inform others about mesothelioma and in particular asbestos related mesothelioma. Through ongoing research I came across an abundance of information and case studies regarding asbestos mesothelioma lawsuits.

I have come across many asbestos mesothelioma lawsuit articles from Texas, Michigan, Illinois, Rhode Island, and much of America. Veterans and Armed Service mesothelioma lawsuits were also found. This opened my eyes to see the extent of asbestos exposure that surrounds all these cases. From what I have read asbestos has been banned in the U.S since 1989 according to the EPA. But the products and factories that continue to have asbestos is staggering to say the least. Most of the houston lawyer mesothelioma asbestos lawsuits that I have read involve plaintiffs pursuing litigation against multiple corporations for millions of of dollars in damages. There have been quite a few successful cases and I believe there will will continue to be more to come.

While continuing to build my website I decided to make my research broader and to also include all types of lung cancer and breast cancer. Through more research in these areas I believe it will provide more information for cancer patients and families. Asbestos related mesothelioma is rampant in many developing countries like China, and India due to poor regulations of asbestos and its use. This will lead to many cases of asbestos lung mesothelioma, and through more education an houston lawyer mesothelioma asbestos lawsuit.

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Sunday, November 30, 2008

What Is Student Loan Consolidation

Are you attending college or a recent graduate? If so, chance are that you have student loans. Student loans are a great source of financial aid for students who need help paying for their education. Unfortunately, students too often leave college with debt. Additionally, they often have multiple loans from different lenders which is difficult to keep track of. The solution to this problem is loan consolidation.

So, What is Student Loan Consolidation?


Student loan consolidation means bundling all your student loans into a single loan with one lender and one payment plan. You can think of loan consolidation as similar to refinancing a home mortgage. When you consolidate your student loans, the balances of your existing student loans are paid off, with the total balance rolling over into one new consolidated loan with a single provider. The end result is that you have only one student loan to pay on.

When should I consolidate my loans?

A question that is commonly asked is, "when should I consolidate my loans?" You can consolidate your student loans any time during your six-month grace period or after you have started repaying your loans. If you consolidate during your grace period, you may be able to get a lower interest rate. However, since you will lose the rest of the grace period, it is a good idea to wait until the fifth month of the grace period before consolidating. The consolidation process usually takes 30-45 days.

Considering whether or not loan consolidation is for you?

Loan consolidation offers many benefits. Some of these benefits include:

  • A fixed interest rate that is usually lower than what you were previously paying for your loan, saving you thousands of dollars (depending on the interest rate of your original loans)
  • Lower monthly payments
  • Combining your student loan payments into a single monthly bill

Additionally, consolidated loans have flexible repayment options and no fees, charges, or prepayment penalties. There are also no credit checks or co-signers required to consolidate your student loans.

You should consider consolidating your loans if the consolidation loan would have a lower interest rate than your current loans, particularly if you are having trouble making you monthly payments. However, if you are close to paying off your existing loans, consolidation may not be quite worth it.

Mesothelioma

It is as dreadful as it sounds, Mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer, it is a disease in which cancer (malignant) cells are found in the sac lining the chest (the pleura), the lining of the abdominal cavity (the peritoneum) or the lining around the heart (the pericardium). In lay mens language houston lawyer mesothelioma asbestos is a disease that causes the deadly tumors to develop in the chest and lung cavity. Mesothelioma is also called abestos lung cancer as it happens due to asbestos exposure.

Malignant Mesothelioma begins in tissue that surrounds and supports the different organs in the body. This protective tissue is called mesothelium and serves to protect the lungs, heart and stomach by producing a special fluid that allows the organs to move freely. Tumors that begin here are very dangerous because of their proximity to the lungs, heart and abdominal organs.

Although these tumors can be benign and non-cancerous, they are more often malignant and cancerous. According to reported studies malignant mesotheloma is a very rare form of cancer.

Doctors only diagnose two to three thousand cases per year in the United States, with men three to five times more than women likely to get the disease. Although rare, the incidents of Malignant Mesotheloma appear to be on the rise. There are three main types of malignant mesothelioma. Pleural mesothelioma refers to a cancer of the lining of the lung (pleura).

Peritoneal mesothelioma affects the lining of the abdominal cavity (peritoneum). While pericardial houston lawyer mesothelioma asbestos is a cancer of the lining surrounding the heart (pericardium). About three-fourths of mesotheliomas start in the chest cavity. Another 10 to 20 percent begin in the abdomen, while those starting around the heart are very rare. Although rare, Malignant Mesothelioma represents a serious health threat to those diagnosed.

Because it often becomes advanced before symptoms appear the outlook is not as good as it is for cancers that doctors find earlier. About half of the patients whose doctors find and treated the cancer early will survive two years or more. The average survival time for all stages of Malignant Mesothelioma is about one year.

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