Asbestos and Mesothelioma

The Link Between Asbestos and Mesothelioma

Asbestos and mesothelioma have been linked to the number of deaths of people who work in places where asbestos is naturally or commercially present. Mesothelioma is a type of cancer that develops from transformed cells that originated in the mesothelium, the protective covering found in many of the internal organs of the body. This disease is usually caused by exposure to asbestos. Asbestos is a set of six naturally occurring silicate minerals used commercially for their desirable physical properties. This mineral exists naturally in a fibrous form that is resistant to heat, water, other chemicals, and electricity, and it virtually ubiquitous in our country. But how does one come in contact with asbestos? There are four ways: occupational, paraoccupational, residential and commercial, and environmental.

Occupational Asbestos Contact

People who work in factories or construction sites that develop or use materials that contains asbestos have been considered as the people with the highest risk rate of mesothelioma. Occupations that pose this kind of risk include, but are not limited to aircraft mechanics, asbestos mining, auto mechanics, boiler workers, cement plant workers, construction workers, engineers, fire fighters, hairdressers, insulators, metal workers, paper mill workers, power plant workers, shipyard workers, textile mill workers, appliance installers, asbestos plant workers, blacksmiths, carpenters, chemical plant workers, electricians, factory workers, hvac mechanics, industrial workers, linotype technicians, oil refinery workers, plumbers, railroad workers, steel mill workers. And considering the nature of asbestos, it is often difficult to remove the fiber once it has made its way into the human body. There are others, however, who do not work in any of these fields still get contact with asbestos through the material used in the construction of their offices and/or commercial spaces.

Paraoccupational Asbestos Contact

Aside from putting themselves at risk of asbestos contact, those people who work in asbestos-exposed areas can also put their family or anyone else in danger. These workers can become carries of asbestos dust and/or fiber and transmit them in public or to their family members. This is the reason why most asbestos-exposed jobs requires their employees to take a shower and change their clothes before leaving.

Environmental Asbestos Exposure

Since asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral, it can be present in some location without being traced. It can also be present in residential locations. Some environmental causes of mesothelioma, however, is caused by some other naturally occurring minerals, such as erionite, that has asbestos-like properties.

Residential and Commercial Asbestos Exposure

Because of its durability, asbestos has been used as a main component of many concrete constructional materials to build residential and even in commercial buildings. Despite the fact that only traces of this mineral is used, prolonged exposure to these traces can cause mesothelioma development, albeit slowly. In fact, in some countries, many construction materials, especially DIY kinds, have been banned because they contain asbestos.

Since asbestos and mesothelioma are closely connected, there have been many measures taken by the government and private sectors to lessen the risk of exposure to these materials. Other private sectors raise awareness to this issue to help people be aware of what to do if they are in constant contact with asbestos, however minimal the amount is.