How Does Asbestos Cause Cancer?
Don’t you wonder just how asbestos causes cancer? I do. Here’s what I found on asbestos and cancer:
Often referred to as “asbestos cancer,” mesothelioma is the most common form of cancer caused by asbestos exposure. Other deadly forms of cancer are also caused by exposure to asbestos, such as lung cancer, gastrointestinal cancer, and colorectal cancer, just to name a few. For many decades asbestos was considered an acceptable source of insulation, and thousands of materials made from asbestos were widely applied in industrial and domestic settings. Asbestos was found in countless products on the commercial market, in many factories, homes and public structures, and in a myriad of industries, such as railway production, shipbuilding, and energy production.
Asbestos cancer is a general term for a variety of cancers caused by exposure to asbestos. Malignant mesothelioma, a rare cancer of the membranes that line the chest (pleural mesothelioma) and abdomen (peritoneal mesothelioma), is nearly always attributable asbestos exposure. Lung cancer may also be asbestos related. Mesothelioma is sometimes mistakenly referred to as a lung cancer because almost two-thirds of the diagnosed cases affect the pleural lining, which predomenantly surrounds the lungs. In actuality, this cancer resides outside the lungs, but may affect their functioning, as it is the job of the pleural lining to permit movement between the lungs, diaphragm and other organs as they function (think of the expansion and contraction of the lungs as the breath in and expel air).
During the first half of the 1900s, growing evidence demonstrated that asbestos is a health hazard causing scarring of the lungs. In the early 1900s, exposure to asbestos dust in the workplace was not controlled. Beginning in England in the 1930s, steps were taken to protect workers in the asbestos industry by installing ventilation and exhaust systems. However, in the huge shipbuilding effort during World War II, large numbers of workers were exposed to high levels of asbestos. As asbestos-related cancers became better recognized in the second half of the twentieth century, additional measures were taken to reduce exposure, and exposure standards were established. In addition to more careful handling, there has been a dramatic decrease in the import and use of asbestos since the mid-1960s, and alternative insulating materials have been developed. As a result, asbestos exposure has dropped dramatically in the United States. However, exposure continues in some other countries. And in this country, there is still a potential for exposure from asbestos that remains in place in older buildings, water pipes, and other settings.