By the end of the 1980s the causal relationship between asbestos and the lethal cancer mesothelioma had been established beyond doubt. In 1989 the EPA banned the use of asbestos in most products. While there were court squabbles over the ban in the ensuing couple of years, asbestos has basically been eliminated from the production line in the United States.
Asbestos mines have long been closed, although substances such as taconite that contain asbestos are still being mined.However asbestos retains a huge presence in our environment. According to the American Cancer Society, the EPA believes that nearly three quarters of a million schools and other public buildings still contain asbestos insulation. The report notes that probably ten to fifteen percent of America’s schools still have asbestos on the premises.
Structures with asbestos insulation or pipe fittings or tiles or other construction material become an active asbestos threat when the asbestos is removed. Disturbing asbestos releases asbestos fibers into the air; that is why workers who retrofit these buildings wear masks and protective clothing.That leaves a lot of construction and factory workers at risk.
The report goes on to note that while the annual occurrences of mesothelioma among men have leveled out, the development of the disease among women is on the increase. Several studies have shown that family members of people exposed to asbestos at work have an increased risk of developing malignant mesothelioma, because asbestos fibers are carried home on the clothes of the workers.
While active exposure among miners and industrial workers may have been dramatically reduced, it seems that the secondary exposure to family members is now being reflected in mesothelioma’s occurrence among women. Because the disease often takes decades to manifest itself, perhaps these family members are simply following the pattern of delayed exposure, resulting in later occurrences of the disease.
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