Carcinoma

Carcinoma is a cancer that begins in epithelial cells, the cells that line the surfaces of organs, airways, glands, and skin. It is the most common broad category of cancer and includes subtypes such as adenocarcinoma (gland-forming) and squamous cell carcinoma. Carcinomas are distinct from sarcomas (which arise from connective tissue) and from mesothelioma (which arises from the mesothelial lining of the pleura, peritoneum, or pericardium).

Origin

The word comes from the Greek karkinos (crab), used by Hippocrates around 400 BCE to describe tumors whose spreading vessels reminded him of a crab's legs, combined with the suffix -oma meaning swelling or growth.

Significance in Asbestos Context

For asbestos-exposed patients, the most important distinction is between lung carcinoma (which can be caused by asbestos, smoking, or both) and mesothelioma (which is almost exclusively caused by asbestos and is not a carcinoma). This distinction matters because the two diseases have different treatments, prognoses, and legal frameworks for proving causation. Lung carcinomas in asbestos-exposed workers are most often adenocarcinomas, and pathology reports will specify the subtype. This language matters in your medical records because defendants often argue that smoking, not asbestos, caused a lung carcinoma. Under the Helsinki Criteria, asbestos can be recognized as a cause of lung carcinoma when exposure history and/or fiber-burden evidence meets specific thresholds, even in smokers.

Example Sentence

The pathology report identified the tumor as a poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma of the lung, which the patient's oncologist explained was a carcinoma, not a mesothelioma, but still potentially linked to his decades of asbestos exposure at the refinery.

Related Terms

Adenocarcinoma, Squamous Cell Carcinoma, Mesothelioma, Lung Cancer, Epithelial Cells, Helsinki Criteria

Notes

• Ask your doctor to clarify in writing whether your diagnosis is a carcinoma (and what subtype) or a mesothelioma. The words look similar but the diseases, treatments, and legal claims differ substantially.
• Request a copy of the full pathology report, including immunohistochemistry (IHC) results; markers like TTF-1, napsin A, calretinin, and WT-1 are used to distinguish lung adenocarcinoma from mesothelioma.
• If you are a smoker or former smoker with a lung carcinoma, preserve your full occupational exposure history. Asbestos and smoking act synergistically, and exposure can still be a legally recognized cause.
• Keep records of any prior imaging showing pleural plaques or asbestosis; these findings strengthen the link between asbestos exposure and a later lung carcinoma diagnosis.