Death Linked to Asbestos Cancer
Article Added June 22nd, 2006 - Print This Story - Bookmark This Story
It has been long known that asbestos exposure could lead to many diseases. But for the first time, a British man’s death has been listed on his death certificate as “the industrial disease of diffuse mesothelioma.”
The wording of the cause of death may not seem out of the ordinary. “The industrial disease of diffuse mesothelioma,” though, may be the first step in directly relating asbestos exposure as the only cause of mesothelioma for the medical world. A 60-year old father of two passed away from the disease in March after suffering severely for a year. The man worked at a tractor making plant from 1969 to its closing in 2003; he developed chest pains in early 2005 and it was found that he was suffering from mesothelioma.
Mesothelioma has been related to asbestos exposure since the 1970s, but it was never concluded that the disease is caused solely by the exposure. The lung cancer occurs when asbestos dust is breathed into the lungs and lodges in the lining. The fibers keep the tissue from absorbing oxygen, causing the tissue and its surrounding area to die. This keeps the lungs overall from retaining oxygen, slowly causing the victim to suffocate. The disease can take years to manifest, and is often untreatable at time of detection.
Article Added June 22nd, 2006 - Print This Story - Bookmark This Story
- David Greenstone, Founding Partner
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