Mesothelioma is different from other cancers due to its long latency period. The symptoms do not show till the disease has reached its advanced stage. This makes the prognosis and life expectancy extremely poor – 12 to 21 months. Before you get disheartened, it is important to understand that every patient presents a unique case.

Once you have mesothelioma, your chances of survival will come down to multiple factors. Though it will not be easy, fighting mesothelioma requires a comprehensive approach that encompasses treatment options and lifestyle choices. Let’s look into these factors and understand the science behind how they affect your prognosis.

Type of Mesothelioma

Mesothelioma is rare cancer that attacks the lining that covers most of the body’s internal organs. It can develop in any part of the body where there is an accumulation of asbestos fibers. Different types have been defined based on the internal organ this deadliest disease targets. Mesothelioma life expectancy depends on the type of mesothelioma cancer you are diagnosed with. These are:

• Pleural Mesothelioma – According to Cleveland Clinic’s research, 75% of patients diagnosed with mesothelioma have this type. This cancer forms in the lining of the lungs causing shortness of breath, cough, and pain in the chest. The average life expectancy of this type of cancer is 12-21 months.
• Peritoneal Mesothelioma – This type of mesothelioma cancer forms on the lining of the abdomen or the peritoneum, as the name suggests. Common symptoms include abdominal pain, nausea, fever, and fatigue. This cancer is the easiest to treat. This is why its life expectancy is up to 5 years. 
• Pericardial Mesothelioma – this deadliest type of mesothelioma is sometimes diagnosed after the patient has died. This is extremely aggressive and very hard to treat. The life expectancy is six months.
• Testicular Mesothelioma – the life expectancy of testicular mesothelioma is up to 46 months if they get treatment. 

Your oncologist will guide you better about the type of cancer you have.

Stage of the Cancer

The stage of mesothelioma is determined by how far it has spread throughout the body and whether it has metastasized (spread) outside of its original location. The outlook for mesothelioma depends on the stage of cancer when it is diagnosed. When symptoms are caught early, doctors can often treat them successfully with surgery alone or a combination of drugs and surgery. However, if symptoms are caught late, treatment may not be as effective, and it’s less likely that you’ll respond to treatment at all because your body has had time to build up resistance to it.

The most common stages are:

• Stage 1 – Limited to one area
• Stage 2 – Has grown in size, but it hasn’t spread
• Stage 3 – Has spread to distant lymph nodes or another part of the body (such as bone) but not yet spread beyond those areas
• Stage 4 – Has spread to other areas of the body or organs.

For Mesothelioma, the earlier stages (1 and 2) have the longest life expectancy. It is easier to treat the disease in these stages, and the prospects look good. Once cancer has reached the latter stages (3 and 4), the life expectancy drops to a year or less.

Cell type

The type of cancerous cell also plays a huge part in determining the prognosis, as one type is easier to treat than the others. There are three cell types of mesothelioma:

• Epithelioid mesothelioma is the most common type of cancerous cell and the easiest to treat. The average life expectancy with this cell is 18-23 months, depending upon your treatment type. 
• Sarcomatoid mesothelioma is the most aggressive cell type and responds the lowest to treatment. The average life expectancy of patients with this type is 3.5 to 8 months. 
• Biphasic mesothelioma is a combination of the above two cell types, which means it is moderately aggressive and responds moderately to treatment. The average life expectancy is up to 10 months.

Treatment

The above-listed factors greatly contribute to how effective your treatment shall be. The good news is that the prognosis for people with mesothelioma is much better than it was in the past. The reason is that more effective treatments are available now. And these treatment options are becoming more mature with time, giving us hope that this type of cancer will become treatable.

• Surgery 

Mesothelioma surgeries let the doctor remove the visible cancerous cell from the lining of the organ. Surgery is usually performed when the disease is in its early stages and has not spread to other organs. However, surgery does not always cure mesothelioma. In some cases, it may prolong survival for a few months or years. According to the European Journal of Cardio-Thoracic Surgery, a successful surgical approach can prolong the patient’s life by 3 to 5 years.

• Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy uses drugs that are targeted to kill cancer cells. It may be used along with surgery or radiation therapy. It can delay cancer growth but does not cure the disease. The prognosis of patients who suffer from pleural and peritoneal mesothelioma increases by 12 months when treated with chemotherapy.

• Radiation

Radiation therapy involves delivering high doses of radiation to kill cancer cells. It may be used alone or with other treatments such as chemotherapy and surgery. Radiation therapy can also be used to relieve symptoms caused by advanced mesothelioma cancer or its treatment, such as pain or shortness of breath. Recent studies show that a pleural mesothelioma patient who has undergone surgery live for 19 months more due to radiation therapy.

Other factors

The uniqueness of each case mostly bottles down to the patient.

• Age – Older patients have a shorter life expectancy. These patients usually do not qualify for aggressive treatments.
• Gender – According to the American Cancer Society, mesothelioma is more common in men than women. Women affected by this also have a better life expectancy.
• Overall Health – Healthier patients tend to have longer life expectancies. Any pre-existing health condition like diabetes, high blood pressure, or heart disease makes them ineligible for aggressive cancer treatments. 

Conclusion

The exact life expectancy for mesothelioma patients still cannot be calculated due to the complexity and long-term nature of this disease. However, with advances in research and improvements in treatment options, people suffering from this disease will be able to live longer today than those before them. To best outline your life expectancy, it is advised to discuss with your doctor, as they will be able to tell you better what your prognosis is in terms of length of life and staging. Even though this is a devastating disease, there still exists uncertainty which we can hope becomes miracles that we all hope to see.