Worldwide Mesothelioma Rates Decline
| |

Worldwide Mesothelioma Rates Decline

ByHolly Zink

A new study looked at the worldwide rates of mesothelioma over the past decade. The international team of researchers hailed from China, Sweden, Australia, the Philippines, the United States, and the United Kingdom. The researchers used information from three different databases to learn about the number of cases and what might cause the disease. The Global Cancer Observatory, Cancer Incidence in Five Continents Plus, and Global Burden of Disease provided data for this study. Banning Asbestos Worldwide Mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer that develops from cells of the mesothelium, the lining that covers many of the internal organs of the body. Sites of mesothelioma are typically the outer lining of the lungs and chest wall and the abdomen….

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

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…

South Korean Mesothelioma Rates Still Rising Decades After Asbestos Ban
| | |

South Korean Mesothelioma Rates Still Rising Decades After Asbestos Ban

ByAlex Strauss

A new report out of South Korea is proof that it can take many years for mesothelioma rates to decline even after implementing an asbestos ban. Asbestos is the number one cause of malignant mesothelioma worldwide. South Korea banned asbestos in 2009. But a report in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health shows the country will likely be dealing with the after-effects well into the future.  A national asbestos ban is a vital step toward fighting occupational cancer. But the new study is a sobering reminder that it cannot eliminate mesothelioma overnight.  Occupational Risk for Malignant Mesothelioma Mesothelioma can be a health hazard for anyone who ever worked with or around asbestos.  Once a worker inhales or…

Global Asbestos Ban Needed More Than Ever, Study Says
| | | | |

Global Asbestos Ban Needed More Than Ever, Study Says

ByAlex Strauss

The authors of a new report on the “silent epidemic” of mesothelioma say a worldwide asbestos ban is more urgent now than ever. The researchers are from universities in Australia, New Zealand and Pennsylvania. They are experts in medicine, public health, and pathology.  Their new report sums up the global problem of asbestos and its link to deadly illnesses like lung cancer, asbestosis, and malignant mesothelioma. Australia and New Zealand are among the countries that no longer allow any asbestos in or out but they still have many cases of mesothelioma.  The US has yet to institute an asbestos ban. Malignant mesothelioma affects about 2,500 Americans a year.  The Link Between Asbestos and Mesothelioma Asbestos is the primary cause of…

Pleural Mesothelioma Rates Remain Stagnant As Survival Improves
| | |

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…

Mesothelioma Rates Expected to Rise for Another Decade
|

Mesothelioma Rates Expected to Rise for Another Decade

ByAlex Strauss

Most developed countries can expect another decade or more of rising mesothelioma rates before the incidence of the disease starts to wane. That is one of the major findings in a recent report from The Baird Institute for Applied Heart and Lung Surgical Research in Australia. The report, which looked at the causes, distribution and projected future incidence of malignant mesothelioma, contains both good and bad news for the U.S.. Mesothelioma is an aggressive and often fatal cancer caused by exposure to asbestos.  It is thought to be triggered by chronic inflammation and irritation in the lung tissue and the surrounding pleural membrane by the sharp asbestos fibers.   Mesothelioma often takes decades to develop. According to the Baird Institute report, the average…

Mesothelioma Rates Steady Despite Declining Asbestos Use
|

Mesothelioma Rates Steady Despite Declining Asbestos Use

ByAlex Strauss

Although asbestos use in the United States has been in decline for more than 30 years, the threat of mesothelioma is still very real. A new CDC analysis of data from the National Program for Cancer Registries and the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results program shows that mesothelioma rates in the U.S. remained steady from 2003 to 2008. The National Program for Cancer Registries is a national database of all cancer cases in the U.S. It allows the CDC to observe and track trends and find patterns in cancer occurrence. The newly-released CDC mesothelioma analysis was based on the theory that “the decline in asbestos use in the United States may impact mesothelioma incidence.”  But according to a summary of the…

Mesothelioma Rates Higher Near Exposed Asbestos
|

Mesothelioma Rates Higher Near Exposed Asbestos

ByAlex Strauss

Disturbing naturally occurring asbestos, whether for farming or building, can significantly raise the risk of mesothelioma and several other cancers. That is the conclusion of a Chinese study comparing the distribution of mortality rates of six kinds of cancer with land use patterns in the Dayao area of China. The study focused on mesothelioma, lung cancer, intestinal cancer, nasopharyngeal and laryngeal cancer, liver cancer and stomach cancer.  Rates were calculated using geographic information systems data. The study found that the mortality rates from mesothelioma and three of the other cancer types were “significantly associated” with outcropped asbestos, asbestos in the soil that was exposed by digging. Asbestos is a silicate mineral that occurs naturally in many parts of the world and…