Short Answer: Unfortunately, yes – cats of all kinds can be harmed by inhaling or ingesting asbestos. This can include health problems of all kinds, and getting your home or outdoor areas tested for asbestos can help prevent exposing and harming your feline friend.

Family Exposure to Asbestos Can Cause Health Problems In All Members of a Household (Including Cats)

Asbestos is a name for several minerals that were once commonly used for many commercial applications, including the manufacturing of building materials and insulation. 

But the durability and sharpness of asbestos fibers can cause devastating illnesses, including carcinomas like lung cancer and mesothelioma.

Even though it is no longer used to manufacture new materials and products in the US, asbestos is still present in many older building structures. When these materials are disturbed, tiny asbestos fibers fill the air and can be inhaled, leading to severe and potentially fatal diseases.

Can asbestos affect cats?

Sadly, yes.

The negative effects that asbestos can have on health are not limited to humans. Asbestos fibers are very light, small, and easily inhaled. Once inhaled, these fibers then attach themselves to a cat’s mesothelial lining in their lungs and potentially throughout their body. 

When asbestos fibers become embedded, they cause inflammation and instigate an immune response, setting off a chain reaction that leads to the growth of unnatural and potentially malignant cell mutations. When these mutations become cancerous, it is known as mesothelioma. 

Asbestos materials in homes can release harmful asbestos fibers.

For most of the twentieth century, asbestos was used in buildings of all kinds. Asbestos fibers are extremely durable and resistant to heat, corrosion, oxidizing and dissolution, and they were often mixed with building materials like vinyl or cement to strengthen and fireproof them.

Most homes prior to the 1980s had some asbestos product or material in them (often – in attics, ceilings, floor tiles, roofs, ducts and older electrical wiring.) Cats can climb or tunnel into the hardest to reach places, and if over time the asbestos materials degrade, they can release harmful asbestos fibers that may be breathed or swallowed by the cat.

Cats in particular touch their noses to walls, floors and virtually anything to examine it and map their environment, so they are particularly in danger if asbestos fibers are airborne.

Even if the cat’s own home is asbestos-free, cats that wander can be exposed to asbestos in a neighboring building.

Cats are also often afforded the freedom to roam the neighborhood unsupervised, even if you know your own home is asbestos-free, there’s no guarantee that your beloved pet won’t come into contact with it. 

Family Exposure to Asbestos

Almost anyone who worked in an industrial environment prior to the 1980s (factory, foundry, refinery, metalworks, mechanic’s garage, shipyard) was exposed to some degree of asbestos, 

But many people do not know they were exposed to asbestos in the home. 

In fact, 1 in 5 people with asbestos illness never worked around asbestos.1 They lived with someone who did.

Nowadays, people cleaning asbestos are required to wear special protective masks and clothing to prevent them from inhaling or swallowing harmful asbestos fibers.

But for decades, the asbestos industry hid the dangers of its product. Many people regularly breathed in asbestos without knowing it could cause health problems later in life.

Asbestos fibers are tiny, durable, and can cling to work clothes and tools. Workers often brought asbestos into their vehicles and homes, exposing anyone who spent time in them. 

Especially at risk of family exposure to asbestos dust are: 

Spouses and other household members that washed asbestos-tainted work clothes.

In fact, a toxicology study found that laundering clothing with asbestos dust can expose a person to almost half the dust as a worker that cuts an asbestos pipe with an abrasive saw.2

Family members who spent time in an enclosed space contaminated by asbestos dust, like a vehicle, garage, or laundry room.

Many people describe asbestos dust coating the walls and floors of a garage or laundry room where asbestos on clothing and materials were kept and cleaned.

Unfortunately, two of the most vulnerable family members in a house are closest to asbestos dust on the ground: children and pets.

Mesothelioma in cats

Mesotheliomas are an aggressive, rare type of tumor that grows in the cellular tissue that lines the interior structures and cavities of the body. They develop due to an abnormal division and replication of cells within the mesothelial lining, and from there, they migrate to other areas of the body. These cellular mutations can occur in the thoracic (chest) cavity, the pericardial sac covering the heart, and the abdominal cavity.

What are the signs and symptoms of mesothelioma in cats?

Depending on the type that the cat may be suffering from, symptoms could include:

  • Difficulty breathing
  • Fatigue/lethargy
  • Vomiting
  • Muffled lung, heart, and abdominal sounds
  • Enlargement of abdomen/fluid build-up swelling
  • Pleural effusion (fluid build-up in the pleural cavity lining)
  • Intolerance to exercise
  • Enlarged scrotum

Diagnosing mesothelioma in cats

A veterinarian will begin by thoroughly examining the cat. 

During this time, you will be asked to provide some background information. This will include information regarding the approximate timeframe of symptom-onset, if and how they have escalated, and whether the potential exists for them to have come into contact with asbestos. 

From there, a complete blood profile should be carried out on your cat. A small sample of their blood will be sent to a laboratory to analyze for any presence of infection or abnormal result levels. The vet will also use a stethoscope to listen to your cat’s breathing and chest sounds. 

Fluid build-up in the pericardial sac surrounding the heart and in the chest cavity are common signs of the potential for mesothelioma, so the vet will be listening for any muffled sounds that could indicate the presence of fluid build-up. 

The cat will likely be given an X-ray examination.

X-rays are often the most critical diagnostic aid for confirming the presence of mesothelioma, so your vet will want to carry out x-rays on your cat’s chest and abdominal cavities. Ultrasound imaging can also be used to identify masses or effusion. Fluid samples will likely also be taken.

Photo by Paul Hanaoka on Unsplash

Treatment and recovery

Treating mesothelioma in cats begins with treating the secondary symptoms. For example, if a fluid build-up is significant, your cat may be hospitalized to perform a specialized procedure to drain this fluid and provide your cat with some relief. 

Unfortunately, surgical removal of mesothelioma is rarely a viable option. They are typically inoperable because these types of tumors tend to be small, numerous, and often affect the entire lining instead of one specific area. 

When it comes to chemotherapy for mesothelioma, while it has proved to be a potentially effective treatment for humans and canines, sadly, the same cannot be said for cats. This is because the chemo drugs used in the treatment of mesothelioma are toxic to felines and therefore can’t be used. 

Treatment for mesothelioma in cats will, therefore, primarily focus on the alleviation of symptoms and pressure on any vital organs. Your vet may want to carry out regular checks and x-rays to ensure that the cancer is not metastasizing or migrating to other organs. 

Final thoughts

Sadly, the chances of curing your cat of mesothelioma are low, but treatment and medications can be helpful in improving their quality of life. It is important to carefully follow all treatments and suggestions given by your vet to make your cat as comfortable as possible. 

AsbestosClaims.Law

AsbestosClaims.law is your comprehensive resource for all things asbestos. We hope this information is helpful.

If you have any additional questions or concerns related to asbestos, check out our website and YouTube page for videos, infographics and answers to your questions about asbestos, including health and safety, asbestos testing, removing asbestos from your home and building, and legal information.

And if you believe that you were exposed to asbestos, or have been diagnosed with an asbestos illness, you could be entitled to significant compensation—money you could use to cover the costs of asbestos removal services, pay for medical treatment, and preemptively protect your physical well-being. 

All without filing a lawsuit.
If you’d like help with filing a claim, please get in touch by email at [email protected], or call or text us at (833) 4-ASBESTOS (427-2378) or (206) 455-9190. We’ll listen to your story and explain your options. And we never charge for anything unless you receive money in your pocket.

1 Tompa E, Kalcevich C, McLeod C, Lebeau M, Song C, McLeod K, et al.The economic burden of lung cancer and mesothelioma due to occupational and para-occupational asbestos exposure. . Occup Environ Med 2017; 74: 816-22.
2 Abelmann, A., Maskrey, J.R., Lotter, J.T., Chapman, A.M., Nembhard, M.D., Pierce, J.S., Wilmoth, J.M., Lee, R.J. and Paustenbach, D.J., 2017.Evaluation of take-home exposure to asbestos from handling asbestos-contaminated worker clothing following the abrasive sawing of cement pipe. Inhalation Toxicology, 29(12-14), pp.555-566.