Lung cancer is the
leading cause of cancer death in the United States, killing more Americans each
year than breast, prostate and colon cancer combined. Medical researchers first
made a probable causal relationship between asbestos exposure and lung cancer
in 1935. Seven years later, a member of the National Cancer Institute confirmed
asbestos as a cause of lung cancer.
ASBESTOS LUNG CANCER FACTS
Symptoms include
shortness of breath, chest pain and coughing up blood
May develop 15 to 35
years after asbestos exposure
Two main forms are
small cell and non-small cell
Prognosis and treatment
depend on type and stage of cancer
Study after study
continued to show the cause-effect relationship of asbestos and lung cancer, and
in 1986, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) proclaimed
lung cancer as the greatest risk for Americans who work with asbestos.
Symptoms and Diagnosis of Asbestos-Related Lung Cancer
Whether lung cancer is
associated with asbestos exposure or another cause, it presents the same
general symptoms:
Persistent coughing
Shortness of breath
Chest discomfort or
pain
Hoarseness or wheezing
Coughing up blood
Chronic respiratory
infections
Fatigue and loss of
appetite
Swelling of the face or
neck
These symptoms
typically only arise once the cancer reaches a late stage of development, so it
is rare for lung cancer to be diagnosed in an early stage unless a patient is
regularly screened. Patients with a history of asbestos exposure should seek
regular screening for asbestos-related diseases.
The diagnostic process
begins with imaging scans such as X-rays and CT scans. If the patient is
coughing up sputum, which is a mixture of saliva and mucus, a sputum cytology
test can reveal the presence of cancer cells.
To make a definitive
diagnosis of cancer, however, a pathologist usually has to examine a sample of
suspicious tissue under a microscope. The biopsy sample may be extracted
through a long needle or with a special tool called a bronchoscope that is
passed down the throat and into the airways of the lungs.
Lung Cancer Treatment:
Treatment options
include surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy and immunotherapy, and
experimental approaches may be available through clinical trials. A patient’s
treatment plan is determined in large part by the stage and histological type
of the cancer as well as the patient’s overall health.
LEARN MORE ABOUT TREATMENT FOR ASBESTOS-RELATED LUNG CANCER
How Does Asbestos Cause
Lung Cancer?
When a person inhales
asbestos, microscopic fibers of the toxic mineral can become permanently lodged
in the person’s lung tissue. Over many years, these fibers may cause enough
irritation and cellular damage to generate cancer cells that grow into a tumor.
QUICK FACT
Lung cancer is the
second-most-common cancer diagnosis in the USA; 220,000 Americans diagnosed
annually.
Whether someone develops
lung cancer or any other asbestos-related disease depends on their overall
health, genetics and the duration and intensity of the asbestos exposure.
All asbestos-related
diseases have a long latency period from the time of initial exposure to the
onset of symptoms. Asbestos-related lung cancer typically takes between 15 and
35 years to develop. The latency periods depends on the level of exposure and whether
the lungs are affected by additional carcinogens such as cigarettes.
Mesothelioma Versus Asbestos-Related Lung Cancer:
Both diseases take
decades to develop but only months to spread to distant organs. The two forms
of cancer involve similar diagnostic procedures, but they differ in risk
factors, physical characteristics and treatment techniques.
LEARN MORE ABOUT MESOTHELIOMA AND LUNG CANCER
How Are People Exposed
to Asbestos?
U.S. companies
manufactured a wide variety of asbestos-containing products from the late 1800s
up until the 1980s, and the mineral was mined at many sites across North
America. The mining and commercial use of asbestos is now highly regulated in
the United States and banned completely in most developed nations.
Because of the long
latency period of asbestos-related lung cancer, most cases diagnosed today were
caused by asbestos exposure that occurred decades ago before safety regulations
existed. Occupational asbestos exposure is the primary cause of
asbestos-related disease, with the most at-risk professions involving mining,
construction, heavy industry, shipbuilding and firefighting.
Veterans are also a
high-risk group for asbestos-related lung cancer because of the military’s
heavy use of asbestos products in bases, vehicles and ships.
Asbestos-Related Lung Cancer and Smoking:
The risk of lung cancer
is much higher among asbestos-exposed smokers because smoking impairs the
lungs’ ability to dispel asbestos fibers. Smokers who have been exposed to
asbestos should stop smoking immediately and seek annual screenings for lung
cancer.
LEARN MORE ABOUT ASBESTOS-RELATED DISEASES AND SMOKING
Types of Lung Cancer
There are two primary
forms of lung cancer: Small cell and non-small cell. Non-small cell lung cancer
(NSCLC) is less aggressive and more common, accounting for more than 80 percent
of all lung cancer cases. Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) makes up less than 20
percent of cases and is more difficult to treat.
Asbestos exposure can
cause any one of the various types and subtypes of lung cancer.
Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer
There are three primary
subtypes of NSCLC distinguishable by the appearance and chemical makeup of
their cells:
Squamous cell
(epidermoid) carcinoma is the most common variety of NSCLC, forming in flat
cells that line the inside airways of the lungs. About 25 to 30 percent of all
lung cancers are squamous, and this is the most prevalent type of NSCLC among
men.
Adenocarcinoma forms in
mucus-producing glandular tissues that line the air sacs (alveoli) of the
lungs. It is more common in women than men, and it is the predominant type of
cancer among nonsmokers.
Large cell
(undifferentiated) carcinoma can appear in any part of the lung, and this type
grows and spreads more rapidly than the other varieties of NSCLC.
Small Cell Lung Cancer
Typically originating in
the bronchi near the center of the chest, SCLC is aggressive and spreads
quickly throughout the body. The cancer can disperse from its initial location
before presenting any symptoms, rapidly spreading to other parts of the body
such as the lymph nodes, bones, liver, adrenal glands or brain.
Unfortunately, surgery
is rarely an option with SCLC because of this factor. Doctors instead rely on
chemotherapy that attacks cancer cells all throughout the body.
Prognosis and Survival Rates:
The prognosis for someone
with lung cancer depends on the type and subtype of the disease, the patient’s
overall health and how far the cancer has spread by the time it is diagnosed.
In the United States, about 18 percent of lung cancer patients survive more
than 5 years after diagnosis.
LEARN MORE ABOUT ASBESTOS-RELATED LUNG CANCER PROGNOSIS
How Do Doctors Link
Lung Cancer to Asbestos?
The Helsinki Criteria
were established in 1997 to help doctors determine when respiratory diseases
are caused by asbestos. For a lung cancer case to be diagnosed as asbestos
related, it must fit two criteria:
Latency period:
The lung cancer must
have developed at least 10 years after the initial exposure to asbestos.
Evidence of asbestos
exposure:
One of the following
must be documented:
Diagnosis of asbestosis.
Higher than normal
asbestos fibers in lung tissue.
Exposure to levels of
airborne asbestos equal to or greater than 25 fibers per milliliter of air a
year (f/mL-yr). To reach this threshold in a one-year work period, the patient
must have been exposed to a level of 25 f/mL. Such a high level is typically
only found in asbestos manufacturing and asbestos insulation work. To reach 25
f/mL-yr in a five-year period, an individual must have been exposed to asbestos
at a level of 5 f/mL. This level is typical of shipbuilding and construction
work.
Asbestos-Related Lung Cancer and Asbestosis:
The presence of
asbestosis is a reliable diagnostic marker that a patient was exposed to
asbestos enough to develop lung cancer. Asbestosis and lung cancer are commonly
associated because the risk for both rises in parallel as asbestos fibers
accumulate in lung tissue.
source: https://www.asbestos.com/cancer/lung-cancer/
source: https://www.asbestos.com/cancer/lung-cancer/
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