Risk Factors of Mesothelioma

The incidence of mesothelioma:

Mesothelioma is a relatively rare cancer, although there is an increase incidence of mesothelioma in the last 20 years, but still a rare disease. Approximately 2,000 new cases of mesothelioma are diagnosed every year in the United States. Mesothelioma occurs more commonly in men than in women. The risk of mesothelioma increases with age, but this disease can appear in either at any age, as well as 30-40 years of exposure to risk factors.

The risk factors of developing mesothelioma:

The only major risk factor of development of mesothelioma cancer is exposure to asbestos at sometime of life and in some form or other. More than 70% of all cases of mesothelioma give a positive history of asbestos exposure. Asbestos is a group of minerals that occur naturally and used widely in many industrial products, like cement, brake linings of vehicles, roof shingles (not used commonly these days), flooring products, textiles, and insulation, due to its quality of strong, flexible fibers that can be separated into thin threads which can be woven. If tiny particles of asbestos float in the air, generally during the manufacturing process, they may be inhaled or swallowed. In addition to mesothelioma, exposure to asbestos increases the risk of asbestosis, which is a chronic non cancerous lung disease. But rarely, mesothelioma has been reported in some individuals without any known exposure to asbestos. The other risk factors of mesothelioma are not clearly defined.

Smoking is not a risk factor of mesothelioma, but the combination of smoking and asbestos exposure significantly increases the risk of developing cancer of the air passageways in the lungs.