Mesothelioma Cancer

by James F. Howell

Pleural mesothelioma is one of several types of cancer linked to asbestos exposure. It is caused by asbestos fibers being ingested into the lungs and affects the pleural lining of the lungs. Pleural mesothelioma is a deadly and devastating disease with no known cure. There are a number of symptoms of pleural mesothelioma, and like other forms of mesothelioma, they can appear very non-specific and could be mistaken for a number of common diseases or illnesses. Shortness of breath, caused by pleural thickening which gradually contracts the breathing space, is often the first symptom of pleural mesothelioma. Cough, chest pain, difficulty swallowing, facial swelling, weight loss, fever, and rasping are some of the other symptoms of pleural mesothelioma. In many cases, however, individuals with the disease never experience symptoms at all until well after it has matured.

It typically takes several decades for the symptoms of pleural mesothelioma to develop, and once diagnosed, patients typically have a life expectancy of only a few months. Men between the ages of 50 and 70 are more commonly diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma than any other demographic, largely because asbestos was widely used in numerous industries from World War II until the 1970s, and due to the amount of time it takes for the symptoms to occur, it is just now being discovered that they have the disease.

The treatments that are currently available for pleural mesothelioma patients are primarily palliative, to ease the patient’s suffering. These treatments include surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy.

About the Author
James Howell is a freelance writer and researcher. Find out more about Pleural Mesothelioma. Or learn more about Mesothelioma.

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Asbestos exposure is the only known cause for malignant mesothelioma and asbestosis. Asbestos has been mined, processed and used to manufacture goods for over 6000 years. However, the more recent heavy use of asbestos, from the late 1880s to the 1960s, caused laborers to be exposed to it in such quantities that asbestos exposure became a deadly curse.

Thousands of cases of mesothelioma and asbestosis have occurred since the 1930s, and medical specialists expect this epidemic to continue for 20 years. The lag time between initial asbestos exposure and the onset of these deadly diseases is typically 30 to 40 years and has been as long as 60 years.
Inhalation of Asbestos
Inhalation of asbestos dust poses the highest risk during asbestos exposure. The asbestos fibers are so tiny that they are able to bypass the natural filtration system of the human lungs. Once inside the most sensitive areas of the lungs, these fibers become embedded in the lung tissue. The durability and tensile strength of these fibers are why asbestos was so widely used as a fire retardant and as a construction component. However, these same characteristics allow asbestos fibers to stay embedded in lung tissue for many years without being destroyed by the body’s natural defense mechanisms. When mesothelioma erupts in the lung tissue, it is called pleural mesothelioma. Asbestosis also occurs due to the embedding of asbestos fibers in the lungs.

Pleural Mesothelioma
Pleural mesothelioma is the most common type of mesothelioma, and it has occurred in a wide range of different laborers exposed to asbestos. Laborers in the Navy shipyards during and after World War II received heavy doses of asbestos exposure while they used asbestos to insulate piping, boiler rooms and other areas of high heat. In many cases the air was filled with asbestos dust and without proper respiration systems, these workers inhaled the asbestos particles day after day.
Those who mined asbestos were exposed to heavy doses during the mining process. In mining towns, such as Libby, Montana, asbestos dust filled the air in not only the mines and processing facilities, but also in the town square. This asbestos exposure has lead many laborers and towns people to develop asbestos lung cancer.
Construction workers who installed asbestos insulation were also exposed. Asbestos was widely used in car brake linings; therefore, laborers involved in the automotive manufacturing process were placed in work environments where asbestos fibers were inhaled, potentially leading to pleural mesothelioma.
Other Asbestos Exposure
Pericardial and peritoneal mesothelioma are also thought to be caused by asbestos exposure. Pericardial mesothelioma occurs in the lining of the heart and peritoneal mesothelioma occurs in the lining of the abdomen. How the asbestos fibers become imbedded in the lining of these other organs is not well understood. For those laborers who contracted these diseases, food could have become contaminated due to asbestos exposure, leading to asbestos fibers invading the abdominal lining. Asbestos fibers could also have gotten into the blood stream, either through food or inhalation, due to asbestos exposure. Once in the blood stream, these fibers could become lodged virtually anywhere in the body.
Asbestos Removal
The use of asbestos has mainly been halted, and the potential for exposure to asbestos has fallen dramatically. However, a number of older buildings still include insulation and floor/ceiling tiles that contain asbestos. Great care should be taken to limit exposure to asbestos during demolition work in older buildings. Respirators should be used to filter the air, and the demolition areas should be sealed so that asbestos dust is not released from the demolition area. For construction sites, OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) has established extensive guidelines to protect construction workers involved in the demolition of buildings containing asbestos.
It is also common for floor tile in older homes to contain asbestos. When remodeling, it is recommended that these asbestos floor coverings not be disturbed and the new floor coverings be placed on top of the older ones. For homeowners, several websites provide information outlining safe removal procedures in order to limit asbestos exposure.

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The history of mesothelioma started in the early 1900s. Mesothelioma history, just as in the discoveries of other major diseases, has a combination of science, politics, medical research and courage. Mesothelioma is a deadly disease that affects the lining of several organs in the body, most commonly the lungs. It is now known that asbestos exposure is the primary cause for this disease; however, for more than 100 years of asbestos mining and production, the link between asbestos and mesothelioma remained obscured.

Lung Disease and Asbestos
In the early 1900s workers at asbestos factories in Britain were experiencing an alarmingly high incidence rate of lung disease. The first reported case of asbestosis in a British asbestos worker occurred in 1906. By the late 1920s, the lung disease problems associated with asbestos mining and production were becoming well known, so much so that the British government commissioned a study in 1930. The study results showed that asbestosis was an occupational disease and was associated with asbestos exposure.
Mesothelioma and Asbestos
The link between lung cancer and asbestos was slower to emerge. While many asbestos workers were dying of lung cancer in the 1930s and 1940s, there was also high growth rate of tobacco use and a high incidence of tuberculosis. Unless an autopsy was performed, it was difficult to determine the exact type of lung cancer that caused death. During this time period, it appears that the asbestos industry officials made little effort to establish the link between asbestos and mesothelioma, even though considerable evidence suggested this link.

The South African Asbestos Mines
After World War II, asbestos mining in South Africa was growing rapidly. South Africa had plenty of cheap labor, and new technology was making asbestos mining much more efficient. Although a well known South African medical researcher noted in 1928 that asbestos exposure could cause danger, he attributed the dangers to asbestos processing, not mining. (South Africa did little processing of asbestos at that time.)
In 1948, South Africa commissioned the first chest and infectious disease hospital in the area of the asbestos mines. The hospital’s first medical superintendent, Chris Sleggs, was the first physician anywhere in the world to see a significant number of malignant mesothelioma cases. He noted the presence of atypical cases of lung disease in the wards. Most cases of tuberculosis recovered with treatment, but a few of the cases appeared to be resistant to the drugs. He began to investigate.
Chris Wagner, a medical researcher, became aware of the atypical lung disease in the mid 1950s. He started a research project to better understand the occupational hazards associated with the asbestos mining. Due to the efforts of Drs. Sleggs and Wagner, along with a third researcher, Ian Webster, by the late 1950s, the connection between mesothelioma and asbestos was well documented.
In 1959, these three researchers attended an international conference in Johannesburg, South Africa. They presented papers, based on their research, showing the connection between mesothelioma and asbestos. After the conference, they combined their data and submitted it to a prestigious British medical journal. Their data showed that of the 33 cases of pleural mesothelioma investigated by them, 32 had proven exposure to asbestos mining.

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During World War II Asbestos was hailed by many as a miracle mineral. Almost anything could be built or manufactured from this mineral. The building and construction industries used it as an additive to strengthen cement and plastics. Asbestos fibers can be separated into thin threads which do not conduct electricity and are not affected by heat or chemicals.

Mesothelioma Cancer | Asbestos

The four main types of asbestos are: Amosite with brown fibers, Anthophyllite with gray fibers, white Christie, and blue Crocidolite. Chrysotile has curly fibers while the other three have rod like fibers. These fibers break into dust quite easily and drift in the air. They can stick on skin, clothing, and can easily be swallowed or inhaled.

Use of asbestos skyrocketed during World War II. Shipbuilding used asbestos extensively in freighters and support vessels to insulate boilers, steam pipes and hot water pipes. Asbestos became the miracle construction material as it was easily obtained, processed, and transported.

After WWII cars used asbestos in break shoes and clutch pads. Asbestos found its way into residential and industrial building materials, water supply, sewage materials, ceiling and floor tiles, and vermiculite garden materials to name a few products.

In the 1970’s the U.S Consumer Product Safety Commission banned the use of asbestos in several products that could release asbestos fibers into the environment during use, following the discoveries of the health dangers of asbestos dust inhalation. Regulations governing the use of asbestos and concern of public opinion since 1970 have created a significant drop in the use of asbestos in the United States.

In 1989 all new uses of asbestos were banned by the Environmental Protection Agency while any old uses before that year were still permitted. The EPA suggested that schools inspect for damaged asbestos and eliminate any exposure or enclose it in protective barriers. Vermiculite, widely used in horticulture, became a concern of the EPA that recommended outdoor use, limiting the amount of dust used, and keeping vermiculite damp.

Asbestos may create serious health hazards such as coughing, lung damage, shortness of breath, and lung cancer. Most people do not become sick in the early stages of development, but usually need continued exposure, often on jobs such as mining, milling, manufacturing asbestos products, and building construction. Firemen, demolition workers, drywall removers, and any other workers in trades that involve destruction of buildings, ships, and automobiles are also exposed to the hazards and risks of asbestos.

Over a period of years continual exposure to asbestos can cause very serious health problems, such as mesothelioma. Mesothelioma is a rare type of carcinoma of the membrane that lines numerous cavities of the body, including the lungs, abdomen and heart, and has been associated with exposure to asbestos dust. In mesothelioma, the cells of the mesothelioma metastasize and damage adjacent organs and tissues.

Risk of developing mesothelioma takes a long period of time, often as long as twenty-five or thirty-five years before full blown symptoms appear. Not all workers who have been exposed will develop diseases caused by asbestos, but workers who have been exposed to it may bring fibers on their clothing, hair, shoes, and skin home to their families. To circumvent this risk, most industries require workers to bathe and change their clothing before they leave work.

Many studies have been conducted involving the risks of diseases caused by exposure to asbestos. The results of one such study involving the risks of smoking and exposure to asbestos proved extremely hazardous.

For further information on asbestos, such as risks, research, lawsuits and disease support groups visit:

http://www.asbestos-headquarters.com

About The Author

Grant Davis, is a freelance writer and has worked in a variety of fields, including teaching. He is senior editor for http://www.asbestos-headquarters.com

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