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Query: UMLS:C0242379 (lung cancer)
 71,905 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Long lasting occupational exposure to asbestos dust may cause skin corns, benign pleural effusion, hyaline plaques of the parietal pleura, diffuse thickening of the pulmonary pleura, and asbestosis, i.e. diffuse interstitial pulmonary fibrosis. Malignant disorders include lung cancer and mesothelioma of the pleura, peritoneum and pericardium. In general, many years elapse from first exposure to the appearance of symptoms. Almost all these diseases are the result of dusty working conditions more than 20 years ago. In spite of the fact that the general public is invariably exposed to small amounts of the material, asbestos is not a public health problem. Even living in a building containing sprayed asbestos is calculated to produce a lifetime risk of death which is negligible. There is no evidence to indicate that ingested asbestos fibres represent a major health problem.
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PMID:Asbestos-related benign disease and cancer: symptoms and treatment. 215 50

Asbestos is a commercial term for a group of fibrous minerals often associated with the development of pulmonary interstitial fibrosis (asbestosis), lung cancer, and malignant mesothelioma in occupationally exposed individuals. The pathogenicity of different forms of asbestos varies--long, thin amphibole fibers are most pathogenic, particularly in the induction of mesothelioma. Available data do not support the concept that low-level exposure to asbestos is a health hazard in buildings and schools. The concentration of asbestos fibers in air, type of asbestos, and size of fibers must be considered in evaluation of potential health risks.
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PMID:Asbestos: scientific developments and implications for public policy. 216 Jul 30

The concentration of airborne fibers longer than 5 microns, thinner than 3 microns, and with an aspect ratio exceeding 3 as counted by phase contrast optical microscopy is the most widely used fiber exposure index. Recently, more adequate, specific exposure indices for asbestosis, lung cancer, and mesothelioma risk have been suggested by Lippmann (1988, Environ. Res., 46, 86-106). The consequences of using these indices are examined on the basis of calculations for a broad range of theoretical and published size distributions. Optical microscopy appears to be a good predictor of the exposure indices for asbestosis and for lung cancer after scaling. Only fibers longer than about 3 microns need to be counted in a transmission electron microscope. The lung cancer index still cannot explain the large differences of risk among chrysotile exposures. Both the mesothelioma exposure index and the ratio mesothelioma to lung cancer index ranks in order of increasing risk: wollastonite, glass and mineral wool, amosite, glass microfibers, chrysotile, and crocidolite. Amosite is thus not ranked according to epidemiological evidence. Detailed size information should be made available so that the size criteria can be adjusted. It may still prove necessary to use fiber type specific concentration limits.
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PMID:Fiber exposure reassessed with the new indices. 215 37

Health risks posed by inhalable asbestos fibers are known to exist in a variety of industrial and nonindustrial settings. Although early studies described an increased risk of asbestosis, lung cancer, and mesothelioma in asbestos-industry workers, subsequent research revealed the existence of a potential asbestos-related health hazard in nonasbestos industries such as the textile and railroad industries. Brake mechanics and garage workers constitute a large work force with potential exposures to levels of asbestos capable of producing disease. Unfortunately, the health risk faced by these workers has received little attention. This article briefly discusses currently available information on the asbestos health risks of workers in this setting, and highlights the need for further investigations of this occupational group.
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PMID:Brake mechanics, asbestos, and disease risk. 217 25

To study whether low-level exposure to asbestos contributes to lung cancer risk, the asbestos body (AB) content in lung tissue was measured in 476 patients with lung cancer and 369 patients with other diseases, all from a Japanese industrialized city. Eleven patients with histologically confirmed asbestosis were included. The findings were stratified into four groups. A significant number of patients with lung cancer were seen in the groups with high counts, as compared to controls. There was no significant difference in histologic type and site of lung cancer among four groups. The patients with lung cancer in high count groups were significantly younger than those with lower counts. A significant number of smokers were seen in the groups with high AB counts among patients with lung cancer as compared to controls, even if the patients with asbestosis were excluded. These findings suggest that there may be a positive interaction of smoking and exposure to asbestos relative to the incidence of lung cancer even at a low exposure level.
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PMID:Study of asbestos bodies in Japanese urban patients. 217 90

Prevention of lung cancer remains the best method of decreasing lung cancer mortality. Patients who smoke should be urged to quit, and children, teenagers, and young adults must not begin smoking. At high risk are smokers, especially those under 40 years of age who may have smoked two to four packs of cigarettes per day for 20 years; persons who have had a previous lung cancer; patients with bullous emphysema; patients with asbestosis; and patients with evidence of chronic airflow obstruction. Although radiographic screening may detect lung cancer earlier and lead to increased 5-year survival rates, it does not reduce lung cancer mortality rates.
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PMID:Screening for lung cancer. Is it worthwhile? 218 98

The inhalation of asbestos fibers (crocidolite, chrysotile and amosite) has been implicated in the development of a number of lung disorders including lung cancer, asbestosis, and mesothelioma. The mechanism responsible for these effects is not well characterized but is generally thought to be related to the fibrous nature of these materials. Therefore, concerns have also been raised as to the potential health impact of other fibrous materials including man-made mineral fibers. Man-made mineral fibers are being used as substitutes for asbestos in a wide range of products. However, relatively little data are available on the potential health impact of these fibrous materials. Epidemiology and clinical studies have served as an important source of information on the effect of various environmental pollutants, but have not been sufficient to date to fully address the potential health impact of man-made mineral fibers. This is due in part to the relatively recent introduction of a number of these materials, the long latency period before the onset of clinical symptoms, and in general, the lower exposure levels associated with these materials. Therefore, a number of animal studies have been performed to predict or confirm the toxicity of various man-made mineral fibers in humans. Both fibrosis and mesothelioma have been induced in experimental animals exposed to man-made mineral fibers although no disease has been consistently observed in occupationally exposed workers.2+ While little is known about the mechanism of this response, information from animal and cell culture experiments indicate that dose, fiber dimension, and fiber durability are the most important factors in determining the biological activity of these materials.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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PMID:Exposure to man-made mineral fibers: a summary of current animal data. 219 81

The question of whether asbestos workers with or without asbestosis have the same risk of lung cancer has not been adequately addressed in the literature. Studies of asbestos workers indicate that clinical symptoms and abnormal lung X-rays are more frequent among smokers than non-smokers, and some studies show that workers with asbestosis compared to those without asbestosis are more likely to be smokers or ex-smokers. Since smoking has a large affect on the risks of lung cancer, smoking habits should be considered when evaluating the risk of lung cancer among persons with and without asbestosis. Some studies show that the risk of lung cancer is higher for persons with asbestosis compared to persons without asbestosis, but none of these studies also considered the combined effects of smoking and asbestos exposure on the risk of lung cancer. It is unlikely that the higher risk of lung cancer to persons with asbestosis is only due to their higher prevalence of smoking. Some studies have suggested that asbestos workers with asbestosis may have a higher risk of lung cancer, but no definite conclusions can be drawn since dose-response relations were not evaluated. Further studies are needed to evaluate the interrelationships of smoking, asbestosis and the risk of lung cancer.
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PMID:Does asbestosis increase the risk of lung cancer? 222 53

Asbestos exposure induces lung fibrosis, i.e. asbestosis, and furthermore, pathological changes of pleura, i.e. asbestos pleurisy of pleural plaque. Generally, asbestosis is induced by massive exposure to asbestos and pleural changes are induced by low dose exposure to asbestos. The most important diseases which are induced by asbestos exposure are malignancies, especially malignant mesothelioma and lung cancer. Two cases, one malignant mesothelioma, the other lung cancer with asbestosis induced by asbestos exposure received almost the same dose of asbestos, as estimated from the period of asbestos exposure and occupational history and the same kind of asbestos (crocidolite) and had a smoking history. We do not know which elements may induce malignancies under asbestos exposure. Recently, some reports described that asbestos mediated the transformation of genes and this action induced malignancies. We should extend our study to the gene problem in cases of malignant mesothelioma and lung cancer induced by asbestos exposure.
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PMID:[Respiratory malignancies induced by asbestos exposure and evaluation of cases with typical pleural malignant mesothelioma and lung cancer with asbestosis]. 224 58

Inhalation of asbestos fibers results in a variety of neoplastic and nonneoplastic diseases of the respiratory tract. Some of these diseases, such as asbestosis, generally occur after prolonged and intensive exposure to asbestos, whereas others, such as pleural mesothelioma, may occur following brief exposures. Inhalation of nonasbestiform mineral fibers can occur as well, and these fibers can be recovered from human lung tissue. Thus, there has been considerable interest in the relationship between mineral fiber content of the lung and various pathologic changes. Techniques for fiber analysis of human tissues have not been standardized, and consequently results may differ appreciably from one laboratory to another. In all reported series, extremely high fiber burdens are found in the lungs of individuals with asbestosis. Although there is a correlation between the tissue concentration of asbestos fibers and the severity of pulmonary fibrosis, further studies of the mineralogic correlates of fiber-induced pulmonary fibrosis are needed. Mesothelioma may occur with fiber burdens considerably less than those necessary to produce asbestosis. More information is needed regarding the migration of fibers to the pleura and the numbers, types, and dimensions of fibers that accumulate at that site. Patients with asbestosis have a markedly increased risk for lung cancer, but the risk of lung cancer attributable to asbestos in exposed workers without asbestosis who also smoke is controversial. Combined epidemiologic-mineralogic studies of a well-defined cohort are needed to resolve this issue. In addition, more information is needed regarding the potential role of nonasbestos mineral fibers in the pathogenesis of lung cancer.
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PMID:Human disease consequences of fiber exposures: a review of human lung pathology and fiber burden data. 227 26


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