About the Author
Sandra Kim Leong
Sandra Kim Leong provides free research and special reports in her newsletter on
Detox Diet.
To be diagnosed with mesothelioma can be akin to being handed a death sentence. Mesothelioma, if you do not know what it means, comes about from an excessive exposure to asbestos fibers. An exposure results in the lungs being invaded. Although it takes years for cancer to be full blown, it strikes with a vengence all of a sudden. Often enough, it is not just the exposed individual who is at risk. Family members in close contact are also at risk of developing cancer because of asbestos fibers that may have been carried on the clothes.
In the past, asbestos was found almost everywhere. You can say that our environment was pretty toxic with asbestos used in wall building materials, brake pads, roofing shingles, insulation, rust removal, coal mining, shipyard chemicals, and even floor tiles. It was not until the mid 1970s, that the real danger became discovered. Sadly, tens of thousands had already been exposed and potentially carried the mesothelioma cancer toxin within them.
Sufferers, who are not aware of the danger, will not attribute their symptoms to a case of mesothelioma. Symptoms usually include occasional chest pains, difficulty breathing, perhaps some coughing, and at times also some back pain. These symptoms are pretty common and can point to almost anything. In fact, most sufferers mistakenly believe that their symptoms are signs of middle age or old age.
It is only when symptoms become an inflammation, muscle loss, and possibly bloody phlegm, that sufferers go to see a doctor. Unfortunately, at this point in time, the tumor will usually have spread and metastasized to such an extent that radiation and surgery are likely to be recommended.
Mesothelioma sufferers often find it a difficult battle to fight against cancer, using conventional treatments. In recent times, however, more and more people are turning to natural or alternative medicine for help. Natural or alternative medicine offers hope.
For instance, in both Traditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurvedic Medicine, the importance of emotional health is underscored. Many mesothelioma patients achieve a sense of overall well-being by combining spiritual meditation exercises, nutritional therapy, and also herbal supplementation to help strengthen bodily health. A combination of therapies is helpful for the attainment of an overall balance in the mind-body-spirit, thereby bringing about healing.
It is important that the patient seek careful advice about what to do about his mesothelioma. He needs to decide for himself which route of treatment is best, or a combination of both. If death is imminent, it is also vital that the state of emotional well-being be looked into. It is no doubt a difficult time, but may the spirit triumph over all.
Published by Sandra Kim Leong on February 11, 2008 07:35 PM
