Monday, April 11, 2011

Mesothelioma

Mesothelioma, or more exactly malignant mesothelioma, is a rare form of cancer that develops from the protective lining that covers many our body's internal organs, the mesothelium. It is usually caused by exposure to asbestos, which is a set of silicate minerals exploited commercially for their desirable physical properties. Asbestos exposure becomes a health concern when high concentrations of asbestos fibers (most invisible to the unaided human eye) are inhaled over a long time period. People who become ill from inhaling asbestos are often those who have worked directly with the material.

Asbestos became popular among manufacturers and builders in the late 19th century but nowadays the EU has banned all use of asbestos and extraction, manufacture and processing of asbestos products.

Unlike lung cancer, there is no association between mesothelioma and smoking, but smoking greatly increases the risk of other asbestos-related cancers. Those exposed to asbestos often take advance of attorneys to collect damages for asbestos-related disease, including mesothelioma. Compensation via asbestos funds or lawsuits is an important issue in mesothelioma. Better start searching for a lawyer!

One interesting thing is that more than 1,000 tons of asbestos are thought to have been released into the air during the destruction of the WTC towers on 9/11. Inhalation of a mixture of asbestos and other toxicants is thought to be linked to the unusually high death rate of emergency service workers from cancer since the disaster. Many thousands more are now thought to be at risk of developing cancer due to this exposure.

21 comments:

  1. things like this scare me like you couldn't imagine.

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  2. it's unfortunate about the firemen and other volunteers who suffered this while helping out in the 9/11 wreckage.

    thanks for the info.

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  3. That's terrible. Interesting, yes, but still terrible.

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  4. I've seen plenty of commercials concerning Mesotheliom, and now I know what it is, nice post

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  5. It's really sad that some people have to suffer from that just because asbestos was so used few decades back.

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  6. scary stuff. hopefully we are bless not to be affected by cancer.

    Following

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  7. No wonder there are so many commercials on TV asking you to call if you've been a victim of this.

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  8. Man thats brutal about the world trade center. Asbestos isn't something to be messed with.

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  9. Yet another reason for me to have a respirator when urban exploring

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  10. Man I'm glad I don't know anyone who has ever gotten this it must be a horrible cancer.

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  11. Some interesting stuff there mate.

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  12. Everything looks awsome under a microscope

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  13. Nice post
    Get an air filter guys!

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  14. I didn't know that they had used asbestos on the WTC. :O

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  15. This is becoming a very common disease sadly..

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  16. It would be terrible to get mesothilioma.

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  17. Mesothelioma is really bad man :( i wish there was a cure or something.

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  18. This really seems like a huge money maker for the ambulance chasing attorneys these days. Cancer is such a horrible thing

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  19. I don't like how that cancer looks on a cellular level.

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