Who is at Increased Risk For Developing Mesothelioma?
By Linda Woodhouse
Since the late 1800's Asbestos has been mined and
used commercially. The use of Asbestos dramatically increased during
World War II and since the early 1940's millions of Americans have
been exposed to asbestos dust working within industries where initally
the risks were not known.
There has been widespread exposure to Asbestos by
workers within shipyards, mines and mills, producers of asbestos products,
workers in the heating and construction industries, and other tradespeople
and an increase risk of deveolping mesothelioma has been the result.
.
Today, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration
(OSHA) sets limits for acceptable levels of asbestos exposure in the
workplace.
By contrast, the British Government's Health and Safety
executive (HSE) states formally that any threshold for mesothelioma
must be at a very low level and it is widely agreed that if any such
threshold does exists at all, then it cannot currently be quantified.
For practical purposes, therefore, HSE does not assume
that any such threshold exists. People who work with asbestos wear
personal protective equipment to lower their risk of exposure.
The risk of asbestos-related disease increases with
heavier exposure to asbestos and longer exposure time. However, some
individuals with only brief exposures have developed mesothelioma.
On the other hand, not all workers who are heavily exposed develop
asbestos-related diseases.
Family members and others living with asbestos workers
have an increased risk of developing mesothelioma, and possibly other
asbestos-related diseases. This risk may be the result of exposure
to asbestos dust brought home on the clothing and hair of asbestos
workers.
To reduce the chance of exposing family members to
asbestos fibers, asbestos workers are usually required to shower and
change their clothing before leaving the workplace.
The combination of smoking and asbestos exposure significantly
increases a person's risk of developing cancer of the air passageways
in the lung. The Kent brand of cigarettes used asbestos in its filters
for the first few years of production in the 1950s and some cases
of mesothelioma have resulted. Smoking current cigarettes does not
appear to increase the risk of mesothelioma.
There is no curative treatment. Close monitoring (routine
X-rays or even pleural biopsy) for mesothelioma is mandated. Oxygen
therapy at home is often necessary to relieve the shortness of breath.
Supportive treatment of symptoms includes respiratory treatments to
remove secretions from the lungs by postural drainage, chest percussion,
and vibration. Aerosol medications to thin secretions may be prescribed
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