What causes mesothelioma?
A risk factor is anything that increases a person’s chance of getting a disease such as cancer. Different cancers have different risk factors. Some risk factors, such as smoking, can be controlled. Others, like a person’s age or family history, can’t be changed. But having a risk factor, or even several, doesnt mean that a person will get the disease. The main risk factor for mesothelioma is contact with asbestos. In the past, asbestos was used in insulation as well as in other products such as floor tiles, door gaskets, roofing, patching compounds, and more. Since asbestos is a natural mineral, it can also be found in dust and rocks in certain parts of the United States. Most use stopped after 1989, but it is still used in some products. When asbestos fibers are breathed in, some can travel to the ends of the small air passages and reach the lining of the lungs. There they can damage the cells lining the lungs, which can lead to pleural mesothelioma.
Mesothelioma has just one cause, asbestos exposure. Many are unaware that almost everyone has had some form of exposure to asbestos; however, in the majority of people it does not result in illness. Asbestos is a mineral that occurs naturally and is distinguishable by its long crystal fibers. The mineral’s fibers can be found in the air, water, and a range of products. Asbestos has had commercial uses in the United States throughout history. Heavy exposure to the fiber can result in asbestos disease, mesothelioma, and other terminal conditions. For more than half a century, thousands of widely used products contained asbestos. Before consumer product regulation of the 1970s, the manufacturing of commonly used items containing asbestos was unregulated. Since that time agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency have outlawed new asbestos uses, however with old ones remaining allowed to a certain degree, asbestos is still used and is still causing many to become fatally ill.
Known asbestos exposure is reported in the majority of mesothelioma cases. Asbestos increases the risk of lung cancer, asbestosis, and other diseases, but most notably mesothelioma. When asbestos is inhaled, it can cause pleural mesothelioma which occurs inside the chest and grows throughout the pleural space around the lungs. When asbestos is ingested, it can cause peritoneal mesothelioma which affects the abdomen and nearby organs.
