Asbestos Bans Not a Quick Fix for Rising Mesothelioma Incidence
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Asbestos Bans Not a Quick Fix for Rising Mesothelioma Incidence

ByAlex Strauss

A new study is further evidence that asbestos bans are not a quick fix for the global problem of malignant mesothelioma incidence.  Researchers in China and the US just released a worldwide research study on the asbestos cancer. The study included 21 regions in 195 countries and territories and spanned 27 years.  The authors say mesothelioma incidence does decrease after asbestos bans. But the decrease can take decades. In the meantime, they say many countries need to do a better job of tracking and managing mesothelioma cases.  Asbestos and Mesothelioma Incidence Malignant mesothelioma is an aggressive cancer with a poor prognosis. Exposure to asbestos is its only known cause. People with mesothelioma often die of this cancer in less than…

US Mesothelioma Cases from Asbestos Likely Underreported
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US Mesothelioma Cases from Asbestos Likely Underreported

ByAlex Strauss

New research shows that the number of US mesothelioma cases has not changed much in the last 50 years. It is likely that even more of those cases are related to asbestos exposure than current reports indicate.  Epidemiologists had predicted that the number of mesothelioma cases would decline after the government put asbestos regulations in place in the 1970s. But that has not happened. US mesothelioma cases have stayed steady at about 0.3 percent of all cancers.  At the same time, doctors do not always make the connection between the symptoms of mesothelioma and asbestos exposure, especially among women. Some patients may not even realize they were ever exposed.  As a result, some experts say the number of cases blamed…

Pleural Mesothelioma Rates Remain Stagnant As Survival Improves
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Pleural Mesothelioma Rates Remain Stagnant As Survival Improves

ByAlex Strauss

A new report shows pleural mesothelioma rates in the US have failed to decline as they were predicted to do, but survival is improving slightly.  The US government began to implement tighter restrictions on asbestos in the 1970s. Researchers at the Cleveland Clinic say original projections had the incidence of pleural mesothelioma peaking in the early 2000s as a result. Pleural mesothelioma rates were supposed to decline after that. But numbers from the National Cancer Database (NCDB) tell a different story. They suggest that, while mesothelioma survival is improving, incidence of asbestos cancer are not. Asbestos and Malignant Mesothelioma Malignant mesothelioma is the most serious of a range of illnesses caused by asbestos. Pleural mesothelioma is the most common type…

Study Highlights Link Between Mesothelioma Incidence and Ovarian Cancer
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Study Highlights Link Between Mesothelioma Incidence and Ovarian Cancer

ByAlex Strauss

New research shows ovarian cancer rates are highest in states with the highest mesothelioma incidence. Researchers say it is because both are linked to the carcinogen asbestos. Scientists have known since as early as the 1950s that asbestos causes cancer. Malignant mesothelioma is the cancer most commonly associated with asbestos exposure. But women with a history of asbestos exposure face a higher risk of ovarian cancer, too.  The new CDC study is a reminder that a higher mesothelioma incidence is not the only threat from asbestos. Asbestos and Mesothelioma Incidence Before asbestos was linked to mesothelioma, it was a popular insulator and building product additive. Most US buildings constructed before the 1980s contain some asbestos. The asbestos in these buildings…

Italian Report Details “Global Mesothelioma Epidemic”
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Italian Report Details “Global Mesothelioma Epidemic”

ByAlex Strauss

Two Italian researchers say mesothelioma has reached epidemic proportions in some parts of the world and does not appear to be slowing down any time soon. In a new report in the Indian Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Claudio and Tommaso Bianchi of the Center for the Study of Environmental Cancer in Monfalcone, Italy analyzed data from cancer registries around the world. They supplemented their raw data with information they got from mesothelioma researchers in other countries. What they found was a disturbing upward trend in mesothelioma incidence in several European countries, as well as in Australia and New Zealand. According to the Bianchis, the UK, The Netherlands, Malta and Belgium reported the highest number of mesothelioma cases in…