Study Finds Low-Level Exposure to Asbestos from Rocks and Other Natural Sources Poses Mesothelioma Risk

Study Finds Low-Level Exposure to Asbestos from Rocks and Other Natural Sources Poses Mesothelioma Risk: "Study Finds Low-Level Exposure to Asbestos from Rocks and Other Natural Sources Poses Mesothelioma Risk
Date Published: October 18, 2005
Source: Newsinferno News Staff
According to a study published in the second issue of the October 2005 of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine of the American Thoracic Society, Californians who live near naturally occurring asbestos sources and who are exposed to low levels of the mineral are at increased risk for developing malignant mesothelioma, a serious cancer of the membrane covering the lung.
Dr. Marc B. Schenker, of the Division of Environmental and Occupational Health, at the University of California, Davis, and four associates, examined 2,908 malignant mesothelioma cases reported from 1988 to 1997.
Over 50% of the men and 58% of the women, all of whom were listed in the California Cancer Registry, either had no or little exposure to occupational asbestos at the workplace.
�People who lived closer to an asbestos source had a greater chance of having mesothelioma, and the chance decreased steadily as the distance increased,� said Dr. Schenker.
Mesothelioma is considered to be rare. It usually develops 30 to 40 years after exposure. The only known cause of the disease is exposure to asbestos fibers, which can cause tumors in the pleura, the two layers of membrane covering the lung, or, with more intense exposure, in membranes of the abdomen.
According to the study authors, California has more naturally occurring asbestos source rocks than any other state in the U.S.
Previous studies all point to occupational exposure to asbestos as the cause of mesothelioma. But population-based studies, Dr Schenker says, have almost all showe"