David H.
Worthington, Ph.D., Keizer, OR
A recent editorial minimized the possible
dangers of asbestos during demolition or dismantling of a local two-story building,
formerly the Hereford Steer Restaurant. The job had to be delayed because no asbestos
review had yet been done.
The dangers of inhaling or ingesting
asbestos fibers have been known in the scientific and medical communities for decades.
Asbestosis and several cancers are known to be caused by inhalation of the fibers. It
takes 15 to 40 years or more before the ill effects of asbestos exposure show up.
The main types of cancers caused by
asbestos are various lung cancers, intestinal cancer and mesothelioma, which is a deadly
cancer of the outer thin sheet of tissue (pleura) surrounding the lungs. The only known
cause of mesothelioma is the inhalation of asbestos fibers into the lungs. Victims of this
horrible disease usually die within one year after diagnosis.
As an investigator, I have worked with
hundreds of these cases in the Pacific Northwest and California, and the longest I have
seen a mesothelioma victim live is 2.5 years. Researchers and treatment centers have noted
a significant increase of mesothelioma cases in the last decade, and more alarming are the
number of cases turning up in young people ages 20 to 40.
There is virtually no funding of research
into effective treatments of this deadly disease except for the recently organized
Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation (see www.marf.org), which depends on volunteer
donations from plaintiff attorneys and mesothelioma patients. So far the corporate
manufacturers of asbestos products have donated not one penny to finding a treatment or
cure for this dreaded disease.
Asbestosis (super scarring of the lungs) is
caused by long-term chronic exposure to asbestos by certain construction trades, miners
and asbestos textile workers. Since asbestos has been phased out of building materials by
government regulation in the 1970s, we are not likely to see many asbestosis cases in the
future. But cancer cases can turn up with much less exposure.
In fact acute exposures to asbestos dust,
such as was the case when the Twin Towers collapsed in September's terrorist attack can,
and in all probability will, cause lung cancers and mesothelioma to some of those exposed
during this horrific episode 15 to 40 years from now.
Theoretically, although virtually
impossible to measure, mesothelioma can be triggered by only one asbestos fiber in the
lungs. Of course the more fibers one inhales, the greater the probability of acquiring the
disease.
The editorial correctly stated that those
workers applying the asbestos containing material in the past were at highest risk. This
is because their activities such as sawing, cutting, mixing and sanding of asbestos
containing materials released asbestos dust. I would add that some of the workers' family
members were also at risk from the fibers carried home on work clothes.
It is only when the microscopic asbestos
fibers are released into the air that they can be inhaled. But every bit as risky for
acquiring asbestos cancers are those involved in tear-out or removal of these materials.
Therefore it is incumbent upon government and the employer to identify the existence and
locations of asbestos materials in commercial buildings so the workers can properly
protect themselves. This protects the workers and their families from future early death
or disability and also protects employers from future lawsuits.
PATIENT PROFILES
