When you suffer adverse health, it can be challenging to figure out what is causing your current condition. That’s what doctors are for, right? However, even a doctor may have trouble forming a correct diagnosis if your symptoms include signs that intersect numerous types of possible illnesses. That’s why it is important to be able to give your doctor a background, along with present-day symptoms.
For instance, if you show up at an ER with an all-over body rash, it would be quite helpful to attending physicians if you were to explain that you had been doing yard work earlier in the day or in your recent past and may have come in contact with poison ivy. The problem is that certain illnesses, especially those related to asbestos exposure, have symptoms that mimic other health conditions.
Issues that should prompt medical attention
You may not be one to rush off to the doctor every time you feel poorly. However, if you have symptoms that you can’t seem to kick, it may be time for further investigation. The following list includes various health issues that may signal an asbestos-related illness:
- If you have had a nagging lower back pain or discomfort in the side of your chest for an extended period of time, it may be a sign of mesothelioma, an asbestos-caused cancer.
- A nagging cough, persistent fever or chronic fatigue would definitely be causes for concern, in addition to back or chest pain.
- If you have swelling, in particular in your facial area or arms, these may also be symptoms of asbestos injury.
- Many mesothelioma patients have trouble speaking. Their voices sound quite hoarse due to the cancer’s effect on their throats.
- Abdominal discomfort, nausea or vomiting, and unexplained weight loss are other symptoms that should prompt immediate medical attention.
If you have never worked in a factory, shipyard, old building, such as a school or library, or any other location where the risk for asbestos exposure is high, then it may be that your symptoms are related to some other adverse health condition. However, if it is possible that you had exposure to asbestos on the job, even if you are now retired and haven’t worked for some years, it is definitely information that might help your doctor form a correct diagnosis.
What comes next
If your doctor diagnoses you with an asbestos-related illness, it may take some time to wrap your mind around the situation. Since the main cancers associated with asbestos are incurable, such a diagnosis would bring serious changes to your life. Many Pennsylvania residents who have gone through similar experiences chose to make litigation part of their recovery plans, especially when they had evidence that their employers knew they were at risk for asbestos exposure and did not tell them.