Clinical Study of Asbestos-Related Lung Cancer

Abstract

We analyzed the characteristics of 120 patients of primary lung cancer supposed to be induced by exposure to asbestos. Most of 120 patients were male and the age ranged from 47 to 87 years with a median of 70 years. No particular tendency was observed in the histological types of the lung cancer in 120 patients. Forty of the 120 patients were heavy smokers. When the occupational history was analyzed, most of the patients had been exposed to asbestos in former Japanese naval shipyard, commercial shipyards, construction industry and ironworks. The term of asbestos exposure was 2 to 60 years with a median 27 years. Lung cancers appeared after 15 to 69 years with a median 43 years from the initial exposure to asbestos. Lung cancer was accompanied by asbestosis in 35 patients and by pleural plaques in 77. Twenty-two patients had both asbestosis and pleural plaques. The number of asbestos bodies per 5 g wet lung tissue for 72 patients whose lung tissues obtained from autopsy or surgery was more than 150 bodies which meant the number of occupational asbestos exposure. As for the kinds of asbestos fibers of 32 patients, 14 patients exposed to crocidolite, 10 patients to amosite and 8 patients to chrysotile.

Asbestos-related Occupational Cancers Compensated under the Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance in Korea

“…However, another study did not show a pathologic difference between asbestos-related and non-related lung cancer 24) . In this study, among 31 cases investigated, the pathologic type of lung cancers, adenocarcinomas and squamous cell carcinomas, were 20 (62.5%) and 5 cases (15.6%), respectively.…”

“…Analyzing 120 asbestos-related lung cancers in Japan, the latency period was found to be between 15 and 69 yr with a median of 43 yr 24) . In this study, the mean latency period was 22.1 yr (range, 9-38 yr), which was shorter than the lung cancer latency period identified in the previous epidemiologic studies.…”

Asbestos Surveillance Program Aachen (ASPA): initial results from baseline screening for lung cancer in asbestos-exposed high-risk individuals using low-dose multidetector-row CT

“…Thus many people have been exposed to asbestos for a long period of time and still a lot of people continue to be exposed. The very long median latency of about 43 years to develop lung cancer after exposure is challenging [10]. Further increases in lung cancer due to asbestos exposure are expected for the near future [11][12][13].…”

Mortality among shipyard Coast Guard workers: a retrospective cohort study

“…A number of potential exposures typical of shipyard work are known or suspected human carcinogens—for example, asbestos, lead, solvents, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, silica, chromium and cadmium. Specific to shipbuilding and ship repair is that many tasks are often performed within close proximity to workers performing other tasks; therefore, workers may be exposed to, and also experience interactions with, agents not generated from the performance of their particular tasks 2 – 5. …”