Mesothelioma (meh-zuh-thee-lee-OH-muh) is a rare and very serious form of cancer, usually associated with previous exposure or inhalation of asbestos, which affects the pleura (thin layer of tissue lining the chest and lungs), the peritoneum (tissue lining the abdomen), or the pericardium (sac-like space that surrounds the heart). Mesothelioma affects some 3,000 Americans each year. Roughly 75% of all these mesothelioma cases originate in the pleura (pleural mesothelioma), another 15% in the peritoneum (peritoneal mesothelioma), and the remaining cases start in the pericardium (pericardial mesothelioma). In this disease, malignant (cancerous) cells are found in the mesothelium, a two-layered membrane that covers most of the body's internal organs.
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