Case Studies

Case Study For Mesothelioma Attorney Ohio

Surviving Mesothelioma in Ohio

When his MRI had come back it had shown that he had cancer of the pleura and surrounding lymph nodes had been affected. His father had Mesothelioma, which is cancer of the lining that covers the lungs, that is the pleura, a diagnosis that had further been confirmed on biopsy. Fortunately for him it had been discovered early and the doctor thought he had a good chance of recovery. His cancer was in stage II according to the TNM classification. According to this classification the cancer had spread from his pleura to his lymph nodes but had not spread to adjacent structures like the heart, diaphragm and distant organs. This meant that the affected pleura and lymph nodes could be surgically removed giving him a good chance of recovery. This would be followed by radiotherapy, which would remove any remaining cancer cells.

His consultant explained that mesothelioma was a rare type of cancer and only affected people who had been exposed to asbestos. His father had worked all his life in an aircraft manufacturing plant all his life and this had where he had been exposed to asbestos. Mesothelioma has a latent period of 30-50 years and then starts showing symptoms. A lot of people keep on being misdiagnosed for a long time before finally being diagnosed correctly. Unfortunately, for a lot of these people the diagnosis is often late and the patients usually have a year or two to survive. Lee’s father had been lucky that his cancer had been caught early. Very surprisingly, his father had remained calm the whole time displaying none of the panic and despair normally associated with cancer.

The treatment had started and Lee’s father was coping well. In fact his acceptance of a life threatening illness in such a calm manner struck him as strange. His father was normally a very expressive man and his silence on the subject of his disease was very unnerving for him. He tried to talk to his father on a number of occasions but he always changed the subject. The side effects of his medicine had also taken their toll and his dad had also lost a lot of weight. Lee had been very close to his father all his life and this was the first occasion that his father had shut him out and was being uncommunicative. This was very distressing for Lee because he knew that his father never talked to anyone except him and he must be going through a lot of anguish.

When Lee discussed the subject with his father’s consultant he was told that his father would need some psychological support and offered the services of a psychiatrist. Since, Lee had also described that his father was also suffering from sleep deprivation and mood disturbances his consultant thought that his father was suffering form anxiety and depression and would have to be put on anti-depressants. It was explained that this was his father’s way of dealing with the stress of his illness. Lee himself had been under a lot of stress. The thought of losing his father and the fear of the cancer returning had been too much for him and he had wanted to discuss this with his father.

Lee’s father is on the road to recovery. His radiotherapy has been completed successfully. Apparently his cancer has been cured and the doctors are hopeful that it will not return. After extensive counseling his father was able to discuss his illness with his son. He had been so shocked with the diagnosis that his mind had gone into denial. He did not want to die. What would his son do without him? But on the psychiatrist’s advice he had one day had a frank discussion with Lee that had eased a lot of his worries and given him a positive outlook. His positive attitude had been the main motivating factor in continuing treatment for his cancer. In a way this disease had been responsible for bringing them even closer.