Short Answer: Yes.

Asbestos is a carcinogen, meaning it is known by health researchers to contribute to a variety of cancers.

Identifying asbestos as a carcinogen sounds about as uncontroversial as it gets for people in the 21st century. 

However, as recent as the 20th century, the general consensus about asbestos was based on centuries and even millennia of widespread praise. Asbestos was closer to a supernatural substance than it was to a cancer-causing agent. So what changed? Here’s why asbestos is considered a carcinogen, and how modern research has turned the tide of public opinion about this so-called “miracle mineral”.

Asbestos: From Commodity to Cancer

Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral that can be found on various continents throughout the world. There are asbestos artifacts that can be traced back to ancient civilizations and everything in between. Humanity came to realize that asbestos fibers offered an impressive array of qualities that made everyday substances much more durable. 

What exactly is asbestos?

Asbestos fibers came in needle-like shapes as well as curled shapes, meaning that they could be used for a variety of different applications. Over the centuries, asbestos became a staple in pottery, clothing, wicks,  and eventually in all kinds of building materials. 

Once the modern era of machinery, electricity, and large-scale production processes was normalized, asbestos was at the center of it all. By this time, asbestos could be more quickly mined, processed, and manufactured for any range of construction and industrial applications. But by the turn of the 20th century, the effects of this large-scale production and heavy usage of asbestos began to show signs that this miracle mineral might actually be deadly. 

How Long Have They Known That Asbestos Causes Cancer?

Since the 1930s, the asbestos industry had research showing asbestos causes cancer, but they refused to publish it. 

Despite the fact that asbestos was not formally limited or banned in the United States until the 1980s by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the Federal response could be summarized more as ‘reluctant’ than ‘aggressive’.  In other words, The 1980s may represent the decade of formalized asbestos regulation in the United States, but it hardly represents the decade of substantial medical research into the harms of asbestos exposure. 

In fact, the first medical research paper that documented the health concerns of asbestos exposure was published more than two generations prior- in 1924. Four years later, the pulmonary issues surrounding asbestos exposure were consistent and identifiable, so much so that the condition was termed “asbestosis” and normalized as an identifiable disease up to the present day. That same year, pulmonary fibrosis was directly linked to asbestos exposure as a cause of death. Finally (and also in 1928), asbestos was directly linked to lung cancer. 

The Tactics of the Industry: Suppression and Denial

In fairness, the 1920s represented the pre-internet era, and only about half the homes in the United States had electricity at that time. Still, printed news and radio correspondence was a common way to get information out during this time. So how was it that asbestos was identified as a carcinogen back in 1928, but it was not banned or regulated in any significant manner in the United States until the mid-1980s? 

It’s hard to boil down the issue to one word. Some suggest greed. Others say fear. These both represent the “why” question, but “why” issues involve much more speculation compared to identifying the “what”. We can use one word to boil down the issue, however. That word is suppression.  

While the details surrounding asbestos’ identity as a carcinogen were public in one sense, that hardly meant that the information was widely available to the average person. Despite this, the asbestos industry at large was well aware of the medical information being released about the connection between asbestos exposure and cancer. 

The House of Cards Falls Down

What was the response, though? Unfortunately, it was a concerted effort to suppress asbestos information. In the decades that followed the landmark research of the 1920s about asbestos as a carcinogen, more and more workers reported illness and argued in court that their medical symptoms like lung cancer were related to their exposure to asbestos. 

The response from many industries was to deny the claims. This pattern continued, but the secret could not be kept indefinitely. More medical research continued in the asbestos field, the death toll continued to rise from workers in the asbestos industry, and more lawsuits were filed. 

Asbestos becomes dangerous to the human body when tiny asbestos fibers are either inhaled or ingested. Once inside the body, tiny asbestos fibers can become lodged in various organs where they remain for decades, doing slow and steady damage. By the time health symptoms are experienced by those who have been exposed to asbestos, the fibers have done significant damage to the body, particularly in the development of cancers.

Why is asbestos still a problem? How does it cause cancer?

Currently, asbestos medical research has connected this mineral with cancer of the lungs, throat, colon, ovaries (and arguably prostate, and a particularly aggressive cancer of the respiratory system known as mesothelioma. Life expectancy and treatment options for asbestos-related cancers can vary, depending on how aggressive the cancer is. Sadly most forms of cancer from asbestos come with a short life expectancy, especially mesothelioma. 

Researchers are still studying exactly how asbestos causes cancer. Asbestos fibers embed in bodily tissue and cause damage over time, including scar tissue that makes it hard to breathe, a condition known as asbestosis.

In addition, these asbestos fibers are known to damage the DNA in charge of cellular growth, and to create free radicals, both of which are health developments known to contribute to the development of cancerous tumors known as carcinomas.

Asbestos fibers also interact with compounds in cigarette smoke to vastly increase the risk of lung cancer (asbestos exposure makes cigarette smokers 40 times more likely to develop lung cancer.)

Most cases do not involve any lawsuit or out-of-pocket expenses.

Compensation Options for Those Who are Suffering

The good news is, that there are compensation options available for those who are suffering from asbestos-related cancer, whether they were a worker in the asbestos industry, or exposed secondhand. Financial compensation can give victims the ability to receive medical treatment that can improve their quality of life, and it can provide the opportunity to leave a legacy for family members. 

One thing to keep in mind about asbestos cancer is the crucial element of time. With short life expectancies and debilitating conditions playing a key factor, it is important to make every minute count when filing a compensation claim. While court cases are notoriously slow and uncertain, it’s helpful to know that asbestos compensation is available without the need to file a lawsuit, plead a case in court, and wait for years and years before any compensation is received. In truth, those who are suffering do not have the luxury of waiting for years on end. 

That’s why it’s important to consider the possibility of filing an asbestos trust claim. Asbestos trusts were established as a way to pay victims outside of court, and for those who qualify, they provide a fast and easy way to receive compensation. If you have any questions about filing an asbestos claim, reach out to us today!

Sources

Asbestos, smoking and lung cancer: an update. Klebe, S., Leigh, J., Henderson, D.W. and Nurminen, M., 2020, International journal of environmental research and public health, 17(1), p.258.  

The current understanding of asbestos-induced epigenetic changes associated with lung cancer. Cheng, Y.Y., Rath, E.M., Linton, A., Yuen, M.L., Takahashi, K. and Lee, K., 2020. Lung Cancer: Targets and Therapy, pp.1-11 (citing International Agency for Research on Cancer, 2012. A review of human carcinogens: personal habits and indoor combustions).

Arsenic, metals, fibres, and dusts. IARC Working Group on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans, 2012. IARC monographs on the evaluation of carcinogenic risks to humans, 100(PT C), p.11.