Asbestos is a carcinogen associated with lung cancer, but few studies have examined the increased risk of lung cancer due to environmental asbestos exposure. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the association between environmental asbestos exposure and lung cancer. We searched for articles on non-occupational or … [Read more...]
Effect of Asbestos Exposure on the Frequency of EGFR Mutations and ALK/ROS1 Rearrangements in Patients With Lung Adenocarcinoma: A Multicentric Study
Objective: The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of asbestos exposure on cancer-driver mutations. Methods: Between January 2014 and September 2018, epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), anaplastic lymphoma receptor tyrosine kinase (ALK), and c-ros oncogene 1 receptor tyrosine kinase gene (ROS1) alterations, demographic … [Read more...]
What is the link between asbestos and lung cancer?
Asbestos is a material that people have used as insulation since the Industrial Revolution. There are strong associations between asbestos and certain types of cancer, including lung cancer and mesothelioma, which is a type of cancer that affects the mesothelial cells. According to the American Cancer Society, several expert agencies, including … [Read more...]
Private Settlement Reached in Mesothelioma Case
A private settlement was reached in a mass litigation asbestos case [on July 28, 2020] in Ohio County [(West Virginia)] Circuit Court, meaning a trial set to take place at The Highlands Event Center next week won’t be necessary. Both Ohio County Clerk of Courts Brenda Miller and court employees for Judge Ronald Wilson said details of the … [Read more...]
Asbestos inhalation poses cancer risks to workers and consumers
The processing and use of asbestos-containing diaphragms by the chlor-alkali industry poses an unreasonable risk to the health of workers, the US Environmental Protection Agency concludes in a draft risk evaluation. The assessment, released March 30, also finds unreasonable risks to workers and consumers who process or use asbestos-containing sheet … [Read more...]
EPA finds asbestos poses cancer risks for workers, reigniting calls for ban
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has determined that [ asbestos dust ] poses an unreasonable risk of [ lung cancer and mesothelioma ] to both workers and consumers who inhale it, ramping up pressure on the agency to ban the substance. In a draft risk assessment published this week, the EPA said that workers who inhale [ asbestos dust ] … [Read more...]
A Most Reckless Proposal — A Plan to Continue Asbestos Use in the United States
Each year, nearly 40,000 Americans die often painful, protracted deaths from diseases caused by asbestos. These deaths occur in firefighters, police officers, construction workers, miners, military veterans, shipyard workers, and maintenance workers whose exposures to asbestos are primarily occupational. Death also occurs in partners and children … [Read more...]
Differentiating epithelioid mesothelioma from lung adenocarcinoma — MUC21 is a novel, negative immunohistochemical marker
A recent medical study investigated the potential usefulness of mucin 21 (MUC21), as a novel, negative diagnostic marker for purpose of differentiating epithelioid mesothelioma from lung adenocarcinoma. In order to analyze the expression of MUC21 by immunohistochemistry, 70 epithelioid mesothelioma and 70 lung adenocarcinoma cases were examined. … [Read more...]
Early Signs of Efficacy Seen With Mesothelin CAR T-Cell Therapy
Mesothelin-targeted chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy has shown early evidence of efficacy in a phase I trial of patients with malignant pleural disease and mesothelioma, non–small cell lung cancer, or breast cancer (NCT02414269). Additionally, significant responses were seen in patients who went on to receive subsequent PD-1 … [Read more...]
Costs related to asbestos exposure much higher than original estimates
The annual cost of newly diagnosed mesothelioma and lung cancer due to work-related asbestos exposure is significantly higher than first thought, according to a study by the Institute for Work & Health. The original tab was $1.9 billion, but a review of figures now puts that cost at $2.35 billion, according to research by senior scientist … [Read more...]