Archive for the ‘Asbestos Exposure’ Category

The incidence rate of mesothelioma has steadily increased over the last several decades, but according to new research, cases of mesothelioma in the United States might be declining.

Pleural mesothelioma is a devastating disease almost exclusively caused by exposure to asbestos. It’s a rare form of cancer that has an extremely long latency period, typically lasting two and five decades. Due to this latency period, mesothelioma treatment options are usually limited to palliative treatment rather than curative.

The research was performed by a team at Health Sciences Practice in New York and appeared in the European Journal of Cancer Prevention. The study was carried out through the analysis of mesothelioma cancer rates in certain groups of people.

The research used data obtained from the National Cancer Institute’s Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results registry data from 1973 to 2002. In analyzing the data, the researchers analyzed patterns of mesothelioma incidence in males and females in five different age groups.

In addition, the researchers studied the rates for people who reached working age after asbestos exposure limits were set by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

The data indicated that while the incidence rate of mesothelioma is still higher than normal in the expected age groups, the overall incidence rate of mesothelioma is actually declining.

For people with little opportunity to suffer occupational exposure to asbestos, the rate is approximately one case in one million people – around 1.15 for males and 0.94 for females. The background rate is around one per million for both sexes under the age of 50.

The researchers also found that incidence rates were higher than the normal rate in certain locations, including locations on the West Coast where major shipyards are situated.

The mesothelioma incidence rate is declining for the older age groups, which contain people who were most likely to have experienced asbestos exposure in the past. However, the rate remains significantly higher for males aged 60 and older.

Since the possible dangers of nanomaterials has been heavily featured in the news this year, the federal Environmental Protection Agency has taken its first steps towards directly regulating the possible health, safety, and environmental risks associated with the technology.

Earlier this year, American and British researchers released a study indicating that exposure to nanotubes might cause toxic reactions similar to those caused by asbestos. Since then, there have been fears about the safety of the new technology.

The study was published in Nature Nanotechnology in May, and found that longer threads of carbon nanotubes share some of the same properties as asbestos, including the ability to cause diseases such as mesothelioma. The research involved injecting mice with asbestos or with samples of various sizes of carbon nanotubes.

When the scientists examined the lining of the abdominal cavities of the mice, they found that longer carbon nanotube strands caused the same types of inflammation and lesions that were caused by asbestos fibers. However, the authors of the study emphasized the need for more research before it could be definitively concluded that carbon nanotubes are toxic and cause diseases similar to those of asbestos cancers.

In response to these studies, and to the concerns of environmental groups, the EPA agreed to launch a study to examine the technology more closely. Under the Nanoscale Materials Stewardship Program, the agency obtained information from several companies working with nanomaterials. The EPA will produce a report on its findings within the next couple of years.

In the meantime, the EPA has developed some initial regulations for companies using nanotechnology.

The EPA has issued a “significant new use rule (SNUR)” for nanoparticles under the Toxic Substances Control Act. With the SNUR in place, individuals or companies must provide the EPA with at least 90 days of notice before beginning the import, manufacture, or processing of any significant new use of a substance on the list, which now includes two types of siloxane nanomaterials.

In addition, the EPA has formally stated that it considers carbon nanotubes to be chemically different from other conventional carbon compounds. As a result, carbon nanotubes may be subject to regulation as “new chemicals” under the Toxic Substances Control Act.

According to the EPA website, “Companies and other entities that are currently manufacturing or importing nanomaterials must evaluate the implications of their activities under TSCA or risk enforcement action from the EPA.”

The abandoned paper mill in Milford, New Jersey is still causing problems for the town and for the Environmental Protection Agency. Currently the agency is unaware of the amount of risk the locals are facing for asbestos exposure, and doesn’t know how far the fibers might be traveling.

According to a recent report released by the federal EPA, the abandoned paper mill in is a potentially serious environmental threat. EPA officials are concerned that those living near the paper mill may be at risk for contracting lung cancer, asbestosis, and mesothelioma due to asbestos exposure.

EPA on-scene coordinator Nick Magriples noted in the report that “there is a potential exposure to nearby human populations from hazardous substances, pollutants or contaminants.” The site in question is known simply as the Milford paper mill, and in the report the EPA has recommended that it be designated as a national Superfund site.

Once owned by the Riegel Paper Company, the mill opened in 1907 and was in operation until 2003. The mill was owned by the Curtis Specialty Paper Company at the time of its closing.

The EPA has been investigating the site since June of 2007. In their original report, the agency noted the site was frequently visited by vandals and trespassers, and that these people would be at high risk of asbestos exposure and the development of asbestos cancer.

Asbestos-related diseases can develop when toxic asbestos fibers are either inhaled or ingested into the body. In some cases, these fibers attach themselves to the mesothelial lining of the lungs, causing pleural mesothelioma.

Now, unfortunately, people living nearby may possibly be at risk too. The EPA is investigating the site and is now carrying out some emergency remediation work. However, when asked at a public council meeting whether local kids might be breathing in asbestos simply because they live near the site, project overseer Lou DiGuardia could only say, “We don’t know.”

The agency has finally agreed to carry out air quality testing, but alarmingly, the site is still accessible to the public.

Also in response to local concerns, the deadline on comments for the EPA’s proposal to designate the old paper mill a Superfund site has been extended from November 4 to January 2.

Asbestos materials in public, private, and commercial buildings is always a risk, but lately it’s one that can usually be avoided with care and attention to asbestos-handling regulations.

There are natural deposits of asbestos all over America and in other countries as well. Many of these have been mined and have served as sources of the substance for most of the twentieth century.

One of those mines, however, is causing problems for two small towns in Vermont. Recently, an old abandoned asbestos mine in Eden and Lowell has been tagged with a health warning from the state due to possible risks of asbestos exposure.

The state of Vermont is warning locals to stay far away due to the risk of airborne asbestos particles near the mine. Many officials are worried that residents who live nearby are at risk of asbestos-related diseases such as asbestosis and mesothelioma.

Scientists have studied medical records and death certificates from people who lived in towns located within ten miles of the abandoned asbestos mine. These studies have uncovered some chilling facts about the risks of asbestos cancer for people in the area.

For those who live within ten miles of the mine, there is a statistically significant increase in the risk of developing asbestos-related lung cancer, asbestosis, and malignant mesothelioma.

The study has found that people who live close to the mine have as much as a twelve-fold increase in the likelihood they will pass away from an asbestos-related disease.

The risk at the mine is significantly high because there is a large pile of asbestos-containing waste rock at the site, and so far no moves have been made to cover or remove it.

Even worse, the abandoned mine site is a favorite location for use by all-terrain-vehicles. The use of ATV’s over asbestos-containing rock could potentially cause asbestos fibers to become airborne, thus creating a risk for the fibers to be inhaled. This kind of activity can create risks not only for those on the site, but also for those living nearby.

According to Health Commissioner Wendy Davis, it’s important that people stay away from the site to prevent the risk of asbestos exposure.

The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency is experiencing a turn-around, as its own employees say they’re getting sick as a result of working in the agency’s headquarters.

The agency has since been examining records pertaining to its headquarters to try and determine what hazardous substances workers might be exposed to.

Having reviewed the records, EPA officials have recommended testing for radon and mercury, two toxins that the agency suspects might be present in the building.

In addition, the likelihood of asbestos being present in the building is definitely a possibility. The substance was used in the construction industry throughout much of the twentieth century, and is now the hassle of many people living or working in a building constructed prior to the 1980s.

Joyce Munie, who manages cleanup programs for the Illinois branch of the agency, says that agency memos from the last several decades indicate the building is safe, but there is data missing pertaining to asbestos. Included among the missing data are asbestos inspection reports, which should have been performed twice every year.

However, the last inspection the EPA shows on record is dated 2001, meaning it’s possible that inspections have not been carried out in the last seven years.

Yearly asbestos inspections are necessary to ensure the substance is in good condition and hasn’t deteriorated to the point where toxic asbestos fibers might be inhalable. The inhalation of these fibers can cause a range of serious lung diseases, including asbestosis and mesothelioma.

Malignant mesothelioma is especially troublesome due the severe latency period that is associated with the disease. In most cases, the disease is not diagnosed until it has reached the advanced stages of development.

Other potential hazards in the building include mercury, radon, and PCBs. In an ironic twist, the agency’s headquarters is the site of a former electrical manufacturing plant, which has had a history of environmental safety problems.

In 1997, for example, the then-owner of the building was fined by the EPA for improper handling of PCBs. In 1993, evidence of asbestos and the existence of underground storage tanks containing benzene were found. All three substances are known carcinogens.

Even now, it apparently is not clear just who owns the building, nor even what company is responsible for its upkeep. The people who work in the building have just now reported continual suffering of respiratory problems and mesothelioma symptoms, but hopefully it’s not too late.

Asbestos lawsuits recently filed in Illinois include a former railroad worker who has developed a chronic pulmonary illness and a woman who has filed after her husband passed away from mesothelioma.

The first lawsuit was filed by Wisconsin resident Doris Piacentine, whose lawsuit names 109 defendants and claims her husband developed pleural mesothelioma after experiencing occupational asbestos exposure. According to the suit filed in Madison County Circuit Court on October 30, Edward C. Piacentine was diagnosed with mesothelioma on March 16, 2007, and passed away only two months later on May 23.

The suit claims Edward worked between 1953 and 1955 as a meat packer, between 1955 and 1957 as a corpsman, and between 1957 and 1967 as a construction worker and truck driver. Between 1967 and 1996, he also worked as an electrical inspector for the state of Milwaukee.

Doris Piacentine’s lawsuit alleges her husband’s asbestos exposure should have been anticipated and prevented by the defendants, and that he passed away due to wrongful causes. According to the suit, he suffered considerable mental and physical pain, lost income, and incurred medical expenses for mesothelioma treatment.

The eleven-count lawsuit asks for at least $350,000, including exemplary damages, economic damages, and compensatory damages for mental and physical pain, medical expenses, and loss of income. In addition, the lawsuit seeks punitive damages to punish Ferris Kimball Company, Sprinkmann Sons Corporation, Sprinkmann Insulation and Young Insulation Group of St. Louis for negligence and misconduct.

Another asbestos-related lawsuit was recently filed by former Norfolk Southern Railway Company worker Don W. Smith, who was diagnosed with a chronic pulmonary disease. Smith alleges the disease was wrongfully caused as a result of toxin exposure during his years of employment as a locomotive engineer.

The lawsuit, which was filed on October 31 in Madison County Circuit Court, claims he suffered from exposure to a range of toxins, including asbestos, diesel exhaust, smoke, and fumes.

Smith states his illness has caused him considerable mental and physical pain, and that his general enjoyment of life has suffered. The lawsuit also alleges he has lost money due to medical expenses and being unable to work.

The two-count lawsuit, which claims that the Norfolk Southern Railway Company was negligent in failing to provide Don with a safe workplace, seeks damages to compensate for these factors as well as legal costs.

Several homeowners in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts are finding themselves forced to fight for justice after a contractor collected hundreds of thousands of dollars for work that was never completed.

Joseph T. Duggan III is the Shrewsbury contractor who has ruined the homes of several local families. To make matter worse, he has left them waiting in vain for reimbursement on the thousands of dollars they spent with little to show for it.

The families allege that in 2003 and 2004, Duggan took their money for work that was never completed. Several of the families have even been left with construction work that violates building codes and must be redone.

In 2006, Duggan’s contractor license was revoked after the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection visited the premises of a commercial construction site where Duggan had been hired. The site included household trash bags stuffed with asbestos waste, which is a substance known to cause mesothelioma. Duggan was eventually fined $36,625 for the asbestos-related violations.

Malignant mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer that most commonly affects the lining of the lungs. Exposure to asbestos can occur when asbestos-containing materials are damaged or disturbed and the fibers that make up asbestos are released into the air. If these fibers are inhaled, the resulting effect is often pleural mesothelioma or another asbestos-related disease. Leaving trash bags full of asbestos waste is a sure way to create such a hazard.

With his license revoked, Duggan has continued several projects despite being barred from working as a contractor. Duggan has also failed to pay the fines that were incurred in 2006 and due in January, 2007. As of today, the agency hasn’t even made a move to collect the money owing, simply allowing Duggan to continue unchecked.

Meanwhile, the Shrewsbury homeowners who were left with unfinished homes and shoddy workmanship are fighting to retrieve the money they paid. Many of them don’t understand why Duggan has been allowed to continue the deception for so long.

Gail Flynn, a victim of Duggan’s poor practices, said, “I don’t feel like there was any justice served here. I don’t understand why they’re dragging their feet. It’s been over three years. Get on with it. This man is a bad man. It’s not like he’s a contractor that just screwed one person and moved on. He’s done this over and over again.”

With Duggan’s poor track record working with asbestos, families who have hired him may even find asbestos problems in their own homes.

The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry has released a new report concerning the dangers of the vermiculite mined in Libby, Montana. In the past, the asbestos-contaminated vermiculite was distributed nationwide as insulation marketed under brand names such as Zonolite.

To gather information for the report, The ATSDR examined people who lived and worked near one of 28 so-called “exfoliation sites.”

These exfoliation sites were industrial plants where the vermiculite was processed, which involved heating the vermiculite until it expanded. When Libby-mined vermiculite was processed in this fashion, asbestos fibers were often released into the air where they could easily be inhaled by workers.

The inhalation of such fibers is exactly what has been known to cause mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases. However, these diseases typically do not reveal themselves until several decades after the initial asbestos exposure has occurred, which can complicate mesothelioma treatment. After being inhaled, these toxic fibers typically attack the lungs and cause lung cancer, asbestosis, and pleural mesothelioma. 

The 28 sites studied by the agency were in operation at various times between the 1920s and early 1990s. By studying the sites, the agency hoped to gather information that would help assess risk for workers and provide information and recommendations for local, state, and federal agencies working with similar industrial sites.

The agency began the work at the request of the federal Environmental Protection Agency, which had identified a staggering 245 industrial sites where Libby vermiculite may have been processed.

The results of the report are not surprising: the agency found that people who worked in sites where Libby vermiculite was processed were at significant risk of asbestos exposure. In addition, the study found that household members of those workers were also at high risk, as well as community members who had frequent and direct contact with vermiculite or waste rock derived from the exfoliation process.

The summary fact sheet, which is available from the agency’s website, also highlights some tragic statistics concerning the incidence of asbestos-related diseases among residents of Libby.

In 2002, the agency had already reported that in Libby the mortality rate from asbestosis was 40 to 80 times higher than expected. To make matters worse, the mortality rate from lung cancer was 20% to 30% higher than expected.

Most of these cases of asbestosis occurred in people who had worked at the contaminated vermiculite mine or nearby processing facilities. Others were household members who lived with people who worked at the mine or its associated processing plants.

Another recently-published study from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health reported that among a group of 1,672 Libby vermiculite workers, the incidence rate of asbestosis was a staggering 165 times higher than expected.

The World Health Organization has released some frightening statistics relating to deaths from asbestos-related diseases. Unfortunately, these statistics demonstrate how the over-use of asbestos in the twentieth century will continue to haunt mankind well into the twenty-first century.

According to the World Health Organization, at least 90,000 people around the world pass away every single year from asbestos-related diseases such as asbestosis and mesothelioma.

That’s a tragically high number of deaths that should be prevented. It has been known for many decades that asbestos poses a severe risk to human health. Exposure to the fibrous mineral occurs when the toxic fibers of asbestos are released into the air and are inhaled into the body. In most cases, these fibers become lodged in the mesothelial lining of the lungs, which can cause pleural mesothelioma. 

Disturbingly, many companies that once manufactured asbestos-containing materials continued to do so with the knowledge that the substance was dangerous. Even worse, asbestos is still in use in many developing countries.

The World Health Organization estimates that 125 million people around the world are exposed to asbestos at work each year, and one person in every million is diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma.

The situation is even more dire in developing countries where asbestos is still in active use. In the African district of Kgalagadi, Mayor Bothajana Mereeotlhe says people in the area “eat and sleep” in asbestos.

According to the Asbestos Coordinating Committee of Kgalagadi, there are more than 100 miles of roads and residential properties that are polluted with asbestos. The committee has recommended that the area be declared a national disaster area, and is working hard to ensure that this severe environmental hazard is addressed as soon as possible. The main problem, however, is simply a lack of funding.

Many Western countries, America included, have experienced many of the same problems in regards to asbestos pollution. The difference is that in these developing nations, the money to clean up the asbestos simply isn’t available.

Dominic Perruccio, the owner of a Peekskill, New York asbestos-testing company, has been charged with a felony after it was found he had continued to operate his business despite having his state certification suspended.

The Peekskill-based business had its state certification suspended in March, 2007 due to several infractions. The company was no longer licensed to provide any kind of asbestos testing, whether in homes, public buildings, or commercial workplaces, and yet the company continued to operate and provide its testing services.

The state and district departments of health, the state Department of Environmental Conservation, and the Peekskill police have all been involved in the investigation on Perruccio and the Earth Research Laboratories.

When the company’s premise was inspected under a search warrant, several unanalyzed air sample canisters were found. These canisters are commonly used to determine air quality during asbestos abatement work.

Perruccio was arraigned on Friday, October 24, and now faces one count of scheming to defraud. According to the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office, he faces up to four years in prison if he’s found guilty.

Asbestos poses severe risk to human health, as it is known to cause a range of serious diseases. Such diseases include lung cancer, asbestosis, and mesothelioma. 

Malignant mesothelioma is especially harmful since most cases of the disease are diagnosed during the latest stages of development. The primary reason for this is the severe latency period that is associated with the disease, which can take decades to develop. As a result, the overall effects of many mesothelioma treatment options are often limited.

Due to the dangers associated with inhalation of asbestos, any materials containing the substance should only be handled by a licensed contractor who has the knowledge and skills needed to safely handle the material.

When asbestos abatement projects are in progress, it is often required that asbestos testing is carried out to ensure safety. In addition, it is vital to prevent the release of any airborne asbestos fibers throughout the project. When a project is completed, more air quality testing is performed to check for any remaining fibers in the air.