Mesothelioma Symptoms and Diagnosis

To diagnose mesothelioma, your healthcare provider will start with a physical exam to check for lumps and take down your medical and job history. Your provider may order a chest X-ray or a CT scan. Sometimes, the chest X-ray or CT scan will reveal fluid buildup between the lung and the chest wall, called pleural effusion.

When pleural fluid is identified, your provider will likely drain the fluid with an ultrasound-guided needle aspiration. This procedure is primarily performed to exclude other causes of fluid buildup and is not usually enough to confirm a diagnosis of mesothelioma.

The next step to diagnose mesothelioma is a biopsy. A biopsy sample can be obtained from the chest wall with CT or ultrasound guidance, under local anesthesia, or with the use of a small camera introduced between the lung and the chest wall under general anesthesia. The tissue sample obtained during the biopsy will then be analyzed to determine if you have mesothelioma and, if so, what kind. Once diagnosed, your doctor may then do more tests to determine what stage your cancer has progressed to.

After mesothelioma is diagnosed, your provider may order tests to determine the extent to which your disease has progressed. In addition to a chest CT, you may have an MRI or a positron-emission tomography scan (PET scan) which helps to identify other areas that have been affected by the cancer. You may need additional biopsies if your cancer has spread to other parts of the body.