Mesothelioma affects thousands of families in the US every year. Most people are diagnosed well into the later years of their lives because the disease is able to hide in the body for anywhere from 20 to 50 years. This means that most patients are grandparents by the time they are diagnosed. It also means that when they are diagnosed, they are already terminal in most cases and the family members need know how to deal with the disease and impending loss of a relative.