Mesothelioma and asbestosis are the long term result of prior exposure to asbestos. You have undoubtedly heard of asbestos, and are probably aware of its dangers. But many people are not aware as to exactly what it is and where it can still be found in the environment in which we live.
Asbestos is a type of mineral fiber that used to be utilized in many products for the purpose of making them more resistant to the extremes of heat and cold. For many years asbestos was used widely by the building industry, before it was known that this material releases particles which produce mesothelioma – an aggressive form of lung cancer – when they are inhaled. Asbestos is no longer used, for this reason.
There is also active controversy that some sectors of the building industry continued to exposure their workers to asbestos, with the attendant risks of asbestosis and mesothelioma long after the building industry was in possession of compelling evidence of the dangers of asbestos use.
One issue many people may not realise is that asbestos use was not limited to commercial buildings – it was commonly used in the building of homes, and yours could be...