The Mesothelioma and Asbestos Awareness Center would like to commend lawmakers and the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation for their support of advancing regulations within asbestos legislation.
Many people understand asbestos to be a problem of the past even as thousands are dying each year from the health complications associated with asbestos exposure. Recent national surveys show that nearly 80% of structures built prior to 1980 contain at least some asbestos containing materials, which are classified as those products which contain at least 1% asbestos. This would indicate that asbestos exposure is a far more widespread problem than most people believe.
Proposed new legislation would not only reduce allowable asbestos limits within products, but also provide critical funding for research in emerging therapies for asbestos related health complications. Among the many respiratory complications related to asbestos exposure is mesothelioma, a rare form of cancer that emerges within the pleural lining of the lungs.
Asbestos fibers are so tiny that even those products which contain less than 1% asbestos are potentially deadly. These fibers will adhere to the body’s inner tissue, causing a sustained inflammation over several years, which lays the groundwork for mesothelioma and asbestosis. There is no cure for mesothelioma or asbestosis and major funding for research has never been intiated. The majority of patients with mesothelioma die within 2 years of diagnosis.
Current mesothelioma treatment regimens include palliative surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy but none are curative. Additional funding would open the door for more progressive integrative therapies, which combine aspects of all existing treatments into a single treatment roadmap based on the patient’s specific condition. These types of treatments have shown marked improvement in prognoses under clinical trial conditions and further funding could advance them so more patients have access.
The Mesothelioma and Asbestos Awareness Center has long been recognized as the web’s leading information resource on asbestos, asbestos related disease, and mesothelioma treatment. Hundreds of pages of up to date content feature important information pertaining to asbestos exposure, top physicians, and ongoing clinical trials, as well breakthroughs in the treatment of asbestos related disease.
