Updated Information on University of Minnesota's Mesothelioma Study

The University of Minnesota recently gave an update on their five-year study involving the Iron Range and its relationship to mesothelioma. The presentation on the $4.9 million project of the rate of lung cancer among taconite miners was held on Thursday at the Mountain Iron Community Center.

In partnership with the Minnesota Department of Health and the Natural Resources Research Institute in Duluth, the University of Minnesota hopes to gain a clearer understanding of why taconite miners are passing away from Stage 4 mesothelioma, which is a form of cancer almost exclusively caused by asbestos exposure.

Ian Greaves, a medical doctor and professor with the University of Minnesota’s School of Public Health, said, “We need to obtain scientifically based sample in a meaningful way.”

The Natural Resources Research Institute will be analyzing iron ore samples of the taconite, as well as dust contamination in the air of the Iron Range communities. This will be done to better understand the geological composition of the taconite and whether it could be contaminated with asbestos. According to the U.S. Geological Survey and the Agency for Toxic Substance and Disease Registry (ATSDR), the Iron Range area has a history of containing naturally occurring asbestos.

Like asbestiform minerals, taconite is a silicate mineral that is found among layers of shale. Scientists have already agreed that the fibers in the rock are similar to asbestos, but mining companies say they are not asbestos and even claim there are no fibers at all on the site.

The researchers that are part of the study are trying to determine if there is a relationship between exposure to taconite dust and mesothelioma.

In addition to sample testing, the study will include health screenings of Northeastern Minnesota miners and their families, which will begin this spring. Researchers are hoping to complete a random screening of 2,000 people at the Virginia Regional Medical Center within a six to nine month period.

Research from these important studies will hopefully provide conclusive insight into the plausible asbestos contamination of the taconite, as well as the potential that taconite may cause mesothelioma on its own.

For more information on the causes of mesothelioma, visit the Mesothelioma Cancer Center.

This entry was posted on Friday, December 19th, 2008 at 3:13 pm and is filed under Jobsite Exposure, Mesothelioma. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS feed. Responses are currently closed, but you trackback from your own site.