Asbestos Lung
Asbestos Lung | Lung Asbestos | Mesothelioma | Asbestos Lung Mesothelioma | Asbestos Lung Cancer
Asbestos lung , is lung cancer caused by exposure to asbestos. Asbestos was used in or with many products. Examples include steam pipes, boilers, furnaces, and furnace ducts; wallboard; floor and ceiling tiles; wood-burning stoves and gas fireplaces; car brakes, clutches, and gaskets; railroad engines; roofing and shingles; and wall-patching materials and paints. Asbestos also was used in various other items, such as fireproof gloves, ironing board covers, cooking pot handles, and hairdryers. Asbestos fibers also can be released into the air when older buildings containing asbestos-made products are destroyed. Removing the products, such as during a building renovation, also can release asbestos fibers into the air.
Studies show that asbestos is one of the major reasons for lung cancer deaths. People with a history of asbestos exposure are about seven times more likely to die from lung cancer than those who are unexposed to asbestos. It is quite tricky to detect this disease though, especially if the patient smokes cigarettes. The disease is double deadly when it is an asbestos lung disease and the victim is a smoker. People who both smoke tobacco and were exposed to asbestos have a risk of developing lung cancer that is 90 times greater than a person who did neither. There is no doubt that either smoking or exposure to asbestos greatly increase a person’s risk of developing lung cancer. When both of those factors are combined – when a person who was exposed to asbestos is also a smoker – the risk factor becomes astronomical. The problem is, lung damage caused by the more than 50 known carcinogens (cancer-causing agents) in tobacco smoke, as well as the other chemicals, irritants and toxins in cigarette smoke, leave smokers more susceptible to other irritants, such as inhaled asbestos fibers.
There is good news for smokers who were exposed to asbestos. Studies have shown that if you quit smoking, your lungs can begin to heal themselves. Ten years after putting down your last cigarette, your risk of developing lung cancer will have dropped from 90 times greater than a person who has never smoked or been exposed to asbestos to 4-5 times greater – the same risk that a non-smoker exposed to asbestos has. If you’ve been exposed to asbestos, this is all the more reason to stop smoking.
Asbestos lung cancer is hard to diagnose early as symptoms may take years to develop. In general, the risk is greatest for people who worked with asbestos and were exposed for at least several months to visible dust from asbestos fibers. When asbestos particles are set free and inhaled, however, exposed individuals are at risk of developing an asbestos-related disease. Once these fibers work their way into body tissues, they may stay there indefinitely.
Article Source :
http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/asb/asb_risk.html
http://www.asbestos-lung-cancer.us/
http://www.mesolawsuit.com/asbestos/asbestos_related_lung_cancer.aspx
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Asbestos Poisoning
Asbestos Poisoning | Poisoning of Asbestos | Mesothelioma | Asbestos | Asbestos Mesothelioma Poisoning
Asbestos poisoning is a term used for the impact that asbestos exposure can have on humans. Its toxicity stems from the fact that the microscopic fibers which make up asbestos in its pure form can have a devastating impact on human health when they are inhaled or ingested. Asbestos (a misapplication of Latin: asbestos “quicklime” from Greek ????????: a-, “not”; sbestos, “extinguishable”) describes any of a group of fibrous metamorphic minerals of the hydrous magnesium silicate variety.
Asbestos poisoning is the result of asbestos fibers becoming lodged in the human body, which is unable to expel them through natural methods. Asbestos poisoning can result in a relatively rare cancer called mesothelioma. Some people only briefly exposed to small amounts of asbestos develop mesothelioma, while others exposed to large amounts of asbestos over long periods, do not. One study found incidence of mesothelioma to be over 300 times as great in workers with asbestos insulation, compared to the general population. Asbestos might also decrease the effectiveness of the immune system.
There are 3 types of Asbestos Poisoning :
- White asbestos – Chrysotile, CAS No. 12001-29-5, is obtained from serpentine rocks. It is less friable (and therefore less likely to be inhaled) than the other types and is the type most often used industrially. Chrysotile should not be confused with chrysolite, a synonym of olivine. There is some evidence that this form of asbestos is not as harmful when inhaled. However it should be noted that there is also evidence that this type of asbestos is harmful, although not perhaps as harmful as other forms (refer to UK Health & Safety Commission report Asbestos: Effects on health of exposure to asbestos, 1985). One formula given for Chrysotile is Mg3(Si2O5)(OH)4.
- Brown asbestos – Amosite, CAS No. 12172-73-5, also known as Grunerite, is an amphibole from Africa, named as an acronym from Asbestos Mines of South Africa. One formula given for Amosite is Fe7Si8O22(OH)2.
- Blue asbestos – Riebeckite, CAS No. 12001-28-4, also known as Crocidolite, is an amphibole from Africa and Australia. It is the fibrous form of riebeckite. Blue asbestos is commonly thought of as the most dangerous type of asbestos (see above and below). One formula given for Crocidolite is Na2Fe2+3Fe3+2Si8O22(OH)2.
Other asbestos minerals, such as tremolite, CAS No. 77536-68-6, Ca2Mg5Si8O22(OH)2; actinolite (or smaragdite), CAS No. 77536-66-4, Ca2(Mg, Fe)5Si8O22(OH)2; and anthophyllite, CAS No. 77536-67-5, (Mg, Fe)7Si8O22(OH)2; are less-used industrially but can still be found in a variety of construction materials and insulation materials and occur in a few consumer products, such as talcum powders and vermiculite.
Article Source :
http://www.carbonmonoxidekills.com/asbestos_poisoning.htm
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