|

The Lungs: Asbestos, Smoking, and Mesothelioma

ByHolly Zink
The Lungs: Asbestos, Smoking, and Mesothelioma

Scientists in Japan published a study about how asbestos fibers interact with the lungs when they are inhaled by someone.

This study, published in Particle and Fibre Toxicology, explored “asbestos ferruginous bodies” (AFBs). When asbestos fibers are inhaled into the lungs, the body forms an iron-rich coat around the fibers. These coated asbestos fibers become AFBs.

Mesothelioma after Asbestos Exposure

When people inhale asbestos fibers, they can develop an aggressive cancer called malignant pleural mesothelioma. This cancer grows in the lining of the lungs and chest wall.

It can often take around 40 years for malignant pleural mesothelioma to begin to grow after asbestos exposure. Imaging studies such as X-rays or CT scans may help in the diagnosis, but the disease is usually confirmed by a tissue biopsy.

Treatment for malignant pleural mesothelioma can include chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery. These therapies can be uncomfortable for patients, and the prognosis is usually poor.

Asbestos and Smokers

The scientists in this study wanted to take a closer look at AFBs in smokers and find out how they might be affected by smoking. They looked at cross-sections of AFBs from two smokers and two non-smokers.

The study revealed that the AFBs had layers made of a substance called ferrihydrite. The scientists also found small round features on the AFBs that might be formed when the body tries to destroy AFBs but can’t.

The smokers in the study had smaller and denser AFBs compared to the non-smokers. Scientists think that is because the AFBs are affected by the different conditions of the lungs. The iron content in cigarette smoke might also be responsible for the higher iron content of the AFBs in smokers.

The scientists believe that smoking may have an affect on how malignant pleural mesothelioma develops in the lungs. This should be studied more so that doctors can provide better treatment options to mesothelioma patients who also smoke.

Source

Avramescu ML, Potiszil C, Kunihiro T, Okabe K, Nakamura E. An investigation of the internal morphology of asbestos ferruginous bodies: constraining their role in the onset of malignant mesothelioma. Part Fibre Toxicol. 2023;20(1):19. Published 2023 May 8. doi:10.1186/s12989-023-00522-0. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10165766/

Similar Posts

  • |

    Mesothelioma Blood Test May Be Possible

    ByAlex Strauss

    An international team of researchers is studying the proteins found on the surface of cancer cells in an effort to improve mesothelioma diagnosis. The team, made up of scientists from the US, Switzerland, Italy and Chile, has just published their findings on a new kind of test to identify protein-derived mesothelioma biomarkers in blood serum. Mesothelioma is an aggressive cancer of the membranes around organs. Because the most common mesothelioma biomarker, mesothelin, is also overproduced by other kinds of cancer cells, it has only limited diagnostic value. A test to identify a set of proteins produced specifically by mesothelioma cells could greatly improve diagnostic accuracy. Led by Ferdinando Cerciello and Bernd Wollscheid of the Institute of Molecular Systems Biology in…

  • | |

    Needle Biopsy “Simple, Safe & Accurate” for Mesothelioma

    ByAlex Strauss

    Mesothelioma researchers in China say a biopsy method that involves a single skin puncture can produce good diagnostic results for mesothelioma patients with little pain or risk. The study focused on percutaneous (through the skin) biopsy in patients who had unexplained fluid buildup or swelling in their abdomens. Abdominal distension and fluid buildup (called ascites) can be signs of peritoneal mesothelioma, a rare but aggressive cancer of the abdominal lining caused by exposure to asbestos. Peritoneal mesothelioma accounts for less than 30% of all mesothelioma cases. Because the symptoms may be vague and often develop many decades after asbestos exposure, peritoneal mesothelioma can be especially challenging to diagnose.  Misdiagnosis and under-diagnosis are not uncommon. In the newest study on percutaneous…

  • |

    Mesothelioma Case Shows Danger of Accidental Asbestos Exposure

    ByAlex Strauss

    A mesothelioma case in Birmingham, England is a dramatic illustration of the very real danger of hidden asbestos. The widow of a physician who died of mesothelioma last year at the age of 51 claims her husband was exposed to asbestos just walking to and from his medical classes. Monisha Coelho believes that exposed asbestos insulation in the underground hallways that connect the University of Birmingham to buildings on the Queen Elizabeth Hospital campus triggered Dr. Ian Pardoe’s mesothelioma. In an article in the Birmingham Mail, Coelho explained how her husband decided how and where the deadly exposure had occurred. “Ian thought long and hard about where he might have come into contact with asbestos,” Coelho told the paper. “He…

  • | |

    Inflammation Both “Friend and Foe” in Mesothelioma

    ByAlex Strauss

    An immune system response that causes mesothelioma symptoms such as fever, fatigue, and weight loss may also be helpful to clinicians as a way to find and treat the disease. Scientists with The Asbestos Diseases Research Institute in Sydney, Australia make that case that both systemic inflammation (throughout the body) and at the site of a tumor – has long been associated with mesothelioma and other cancers. Inflammation results when the body attempts to address the imbalances of cancer by producing more of certain immune system cells. Some inflammatory markers, such as CD+8 T-cells and C-reactive protein, have been linked to better prognosis in mesothelioma. Other inflammatory markers, such as certain macrophages and a high neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, can signal the…

  • |

    Short-term Asbestos Exposure Triggers Mesothelioma

    ByAlex Strauss

    The recent death of a British man from mesothelioma is evidence of the destructive power of asbestos – even when exposure is short.  A British newspaper reports that Welwyn resident Roger Beale first began experiencing a classic symptom of mesothelioma, shortness of breath, nearly 4 years ago. Beale first noticed the problem while walking up stairs. After a chest X-ray, Beale’s symptoms were attributed to a chest infection.  But when his symptoms continued to worsen, Beale sought medical care again in January, 2010 and was diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma, an intractable cancer of the lung lining that is almost always caused by exposure to asbestos. By November of 2010, Beale’s shortness of breath had gotten worse, despite regular monitoring and…

  • | |

    FDG PET-CT Results Could Lead to Improved Mesothelioma Treatment

    ByAlex Strauss

    In a recent study, researchers say a better understanding of certain diagnostic criteria could result in more targeted treatments for malignant mesothelioma. In a recent published report, doctors from the medical school at Dicle University in Diyarbakir, Turkey measured the relationship between PET-CT scan results and survival in 177 patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma. The patients were diagnosed between April 2007 and April 2011. They had a mean age of 55.4 and most (56%) were male. Patients in the study all had FDG PET-CT scans before beginning their mesothelioma treatment. FDG PET-CT scanning is a powerful imaging tool for mesothelioma and other cancers that combines a radioactive tracer with a combination of positron emission tomography and computed tomography scanning.  Because…