Not only Asbestos causes Mesothelioma Lung Cancer by Vera Cherneva
Mesothelioma lung cancer is usually associated with asbestos exposure. In fact there are many other risk factors that cause mesothelioma cancer. One of them is the erionite. Erionite is a naturally occurring fibrous mineral that belongs to a group of minerals called zeolites. Zeolites are hydrated aluminosilicates of the alkaline and alkaline-earth metals. Erionite was used in the past as a noble metal-impregnated catalyst in a hydrocarbon-cracking process. It was studied for use in fertilizers and to control odors in livestock production, because of its ability to selectively adsorb molecules from air or liquids. In many countries erionite blocks were used (and may be are still used) as building material or in stucco pastes and whitewash.
Erionite was mentioned for the first time as a mesothelioma lung cancer risk factor in 1975, when Turkish government presented a study that uncovered a high incidence of a rare malignant mesothelioma in lung tissues of people in certain small villages in the Cappadocia area in Turkey's central mountainous region. In two small villages the mesothelioma lung cancer accounted for 43 % of the deaths during 23 years period of study. Erionite fibers were found in biopsies of lungs of the mesothelioma cancer afflicted people. Comparing this to a 9.7% rate of death from this disease among asbestos insulation installers shows how anomalous this condition was.
Further studies showed erionite causes similar diseases in laboratory animals. When researchers at Mt. Sinai Hospital injected rats with the same dosage of erionite that they used for asbestos, rats didn't live long enough to get mesothelioma cancer. At a much- reduced dose, the rats did get cancer. Erionite is probably the most toxic known mineral - a milligram of fibers in the lungs is lethal.
Today erionite is considered so hazardous that the EPA requires any one who intends to manufacture, import or process any article containing erionite to notify the E.P.A. 90 days in advance. This gives the EPA a chance to review, limit or prohibit that activity.
Erionite is no longer mined or marketed for commercial purposes. Although other natural zeolites have many commercial uses (pet litter, soil conditioners, animal feed, waste-water treatment, gas absorbents, etc.) So potential occupational exposure to erionite occurs during the production and mining of other zeolites.
And there are questions: Are there other mineralogical hazards like erionite and asbestos? Should we expected mesothelioma lung cancer increases not only from asbestos exposure after another 20 - 30 years?
Tuesday, November 15, 2005
Sunday, November 06, 2005
Protect against mesothelioma by
Lewis and Sholnick have announced the publication of some simple precautionary steps can be taken to avoid high risk situations in regards to asbestos and mesothelioma.
Mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer caused by exposure to asbestos. It refers specifically to a cancerous tumor which involves the mesothelial cells of an organ, usually the lungs or abdomen. Despite being classified under the rather broad category of cancer, however, Mesothelioma is unique for a number of reasons. First is the immense devastation of the disease, and the inability for modern medical techniques to significantly slow its onset or offer a cure. Approximately 75 % of patients die within 18 months of the first signs of the disease. Second, is the long latency period between exposure to the cause of the disease, asbestos, and its onset.
Latency runs the gamut from 15 to 50 years, meaning that a person may have been exposed to asbestos more than a half century before the first serious signs of the disease manifest themselves. The average reported latency, however, is approximately 35-40 years.
Precautionary Steps
Because of the devastating nature of the disease and because we are able to point to a single root source, asbestos exposure, there is significant reason for all individuals to take necessary precautions to avoid contraction of the disease. While certainly no steps taken can fully eliminate all risk of asbestos exposure, some simple precautionary steps can be taken to avoid high risk situations.
For instance, a responsible parent should contact their childrenÃs local school district. In 1986 Congress passed the Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act, which required public and private nonprofit schools to inspect their buildings for asbestos-containing materials. Despite this, an untold number of schools either have not taken the necessary steps to eliminate the potential for asbestos exposure or the work has been done shoddily. In fact, just two years ago a New York school district was found to have high levels of asbestos despite having had a contractor "remove" the threat a mere five years before. Upon further investigation, however, the contractor used had already been cited numerous times for doing work not up to code in similar asbestos removal projects.
Consequently, concerned parents should first contact their childrenÃs school district to receive a copy of documentation stating that indeed, proper steps were taken to remove asbestos from the building. Then, parents should do a bit of their own research via the internet and the Better Business Bureau to ensure that the contractor hired has a stellar record. stellar record.
More information can be found at , a free online resource. for more information on mesothelioma and asbestos litigation.
Mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer caused by exposure to asbestos. It refers specifically to a cancerous tumor which involves the mesothelial cells of an organ, usually the lungs or abdomen. Despite being classified under the rather broad category of cancer, however, Mesothelioma is unique for a number of reasons. First is the immense devastation of the disease, and the inability for modern medical techniques to significantly slow its onset or offer a cure. Approximately 75 % of patients die within 18 months of the first signs of the disease. Second, is the long latency period between exposure to the cause of the disease, asbestos, and its onset.
Latency runs the gamut from 15 to 50 years, meaning that a person may have been exposed to asbestos more than a half century before the first serious signs of the disease manifest themselves. The average reported latency, however, is approximately 35-40 years.
Precautionary Steps
Because of the devastating nature of the disease and because we are able to point to a single root source, asbestos exposure, there is significant reason for all individuals to take necessary precautions to avoid contraction of the disease. While certainly no steps taken can fully eliminate all risk of asbestos exposure, some simple precautionary steps can be taken to avoid high risk situations.
For instance, a responsible parent should contact their childrenÃs local school district. In 1986 Congress passed the Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act, which required public and private nonprofit schools to inspect their buildings for asbestos-containing materials. Despite this, an untold number of schools either have not taken the necessary steps to eliminate the potential for asbestos exposure or the work has been done shoddily. In fact, just two years ago a New York school district was found to have high levels of asbestos despite having had a contractor "remove" the threat a mere five years before. Upon further investigation, however, the contractor used had already been cited numerous times for doing work not up to code in similar asbestos removal projects.
Consequently, concerned parents should first contact their childrenÃs school district to receive a copy of documentation stating that indeed, proper steps were taken to remove asbestos from the building. Then, parents should do a bit of their own research via the internet and the Better Business Bureau to ensure that the contractor hired has a stellar record. stellar record.
More information can be found at , a free online resource. for more information on mesothelioma and asbestos litigation.
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