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December 26, 2013
Raleigh, North Carolina - A recent study published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine indicates that even minimal exposure to asbestos can result in the development of cancers, including mesothelioma.
Using data from research of nearly 60,000 Norwegian men, the study examined the association between asbestos exposure and three particular types of cancer. In an attempt to measure the probability of acquiring asbestos-related diseases, the participants’ job histories were compared to asbestos-exposure matrices of numerous occupations. Over the course of seventeen years, the subjects—ranging from 55 to 69 years old—developed 132 cases of mesothelioma, 2,324 cases of lung cancer, and 166 cases of laryngeal cancer. The research showed that the lung and laryngeal cancers developed in subjects with high levels of prolonged exposure to asbestos. The mesothelioma cases, however, showed that only low levels of asbestos exposure were necessary for the development of the disease.
Although the least common of the three cancers studied, mesothelioma is considered the deadliest, mostly because very little exposure can be enough to cause the disease, but also because of its lengthy latency period and rapid progression. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has declared any exposure to asbestos potentially detrimental to one’s health.
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