Week in Review at the Mesothelioma Center: Alarming Asbestos News

There was news from all angles this week at the Mesothelioma Center, and much of it good , but clearly the most disconcerting news was that the importing of asbestos by American manufacturers could be on the rise again.

Asbestos is a known carcinogen that causes mesothelioma and a variety of other respiratory illnesses.

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) Mineral Commodity Summaries detailed a reversal in 2011 of the steady asbestos decline that previously marked the 21st century.

Also in the news this week was a report from the United Kingdom which examined how much lifestyle choices can effect one’s risk of developing cancer; a $6.9 million donation by Bristol-Myers Squibb to help cancer patients; and a look at asbestos as a risk factor for small-cell lung cancer, which killed legendary football coach Joe Paterno.

Missoula County, Montana, is one of many government agencies throughout the country this week putting the final touches on a pilot federal grant application from the Environmental Protection Agency to help fund the high cost of asbestos abatement. The applications are due by Feb. 10, and more than $5 million is available.

The most encouraging news had to be the new piece of federal legislation, sponsored by Congressman Leonard Lance, that could speed the process of getting treatments and drugs for rare diseases like mesothelioma from research labs and into the hands of medical providers quicker.

“The asbestos industry has argued for years that importation and exposure was decreasing. We have discovered that the argument simply isn’t true,” said Linda Reinstein of the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization.  “I was appalled and shocked  (to learn the numbers).”

In the first seven months of 2011 (the latest figures available), the number of tons of asbestos imported into the United States exceeded the 12-month totals from either 2009 or 2010, according to the USGS report.

The study done by Cancer Research in the UK found that four specific lifestyle choices – smoking, alcohol consumption, an unhealthy diet and being overweight — contribute to over 100,000 cancers each year in Britain.

One in 25 cancers was linked to occupational exposure like that of asbestos, which causes mesothelioma.

Bristol-Myers Squibb tooted its own horn with the announcement that $6.9 million in 2011 went to HealthWell Foundation, which provides financial assistance to those in need of health treatments like surgery, chemotherapy and radiation, for mesothelioma.

Paterno, 85, coached football for 46 years at Penn State and, won a record 409 games,  but he died just 72 days after being diagnosed with small-cell lung cancer, which is extremely rare for a non-smoker.  Most experts consider an exposure to second-hand smoke, asbestos or radon as the most likely risks for a non smoker like Paterno.

Lance, a House Republican from New Jersey, has been applauded by national health groups for his efforts. There are 30 million Americans who are afflicted with one of 7,000 rare diseases or disorders that his bill could help.

The MODDERN Cures Act would encourage the development of new drugs and treatments.

An award winning reporter and writer, Tim Povtak is a senior content writer for the Mesothelioma Center. He previously worked at the Orlando Sentinel and then at AOL. You can contact him directly tpovtak@asbestos.com with any story ideas or comments.

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