Systemic inflammation shortens lives of mesothelioma patients

Mesothelioma, as Louisville residents may know, is an aggressive cancer usually caused by long-term exposure to asbestos. Among mesothelioma patients, there are several factors that can determine how long they have to live, and Chinese researchers have recently pointed to systemic inflammation as one of those factors. Their results were published in Cancer Management and Research.

The body responds to mesothelioma by sending out certain types of proteins and white blood cells, called lymphocytes and neutrophils, to fight it; this causes systemic inflammation. The systemic immune-inflammation index refers to the various degrees of inflammation and can be measured via blood test. A high SII will mean shorter survival for patients.

Researchers came to this conclusion after looking at the medical records of 97 malignant mesothelioma patients, 44 of whom had high SII. The median survival for those patients was 13 months, a drastic difference from the 47 months seen by those with low SII. While half of low-SII patients lived over three years, only 13.8% of high-SII patients survived that long.

Patients who had good overall health and who had undergone adjuvant treatment, which is additional treatment to keep mesothelioma from returning, tended to live the longest. It should be noted that mesothelioma is incurable and that many patients are not diagnosed until it reaches an advanced stage.

Mesothelioma can develop through the negligence of employers who do nothing about asbestos exposure, or it may come about through hazardous products. Those with an affected family member may want an attorney to evaluate their case and determine how much they can receive in compensation. The attorney may have a network of investigators and other third parties to gather as much proof of negligence as possible. The attorney may then proceed to negotiations, litigating if a settlement cannot be achieved.