With all of the information about asbestos that has been circulating within the past few decades, many people have been led to believe that this substance has been banned outright by the United States government. Unfortunately, even though it has been proven to lead directly to deadly diseases, such as the rare and aggressive cancer called mesothelioma, asbestos is still found in a wide range of products in the United States and around the world, and the Environmental Protection Agency has never issued a general ban on the use of asbestos.

Sixty countries worldwide have banned the use of asbestos, either in whole or in part. Beginning in the early 1970s, and continuing until the early 1990s, both the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have issued standards regulating the permissible levels of asbestos exposure in the workplace. Yet the material was one of the first hazardous air pollutants to be regulated under Section 112 of the Clean Air Act of 1970, which is also known as the NESHAP, or National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants. A number of applications of asbestos have also been forbidden by the Toxic Substances Control Act, as well. Most developed nations also regulate or ban both the mining and importation of raw asbestos material.  

Nevertheless, most of these regulations and standards do not address the fact that asbestos remains in a number of existing structures and products. Although there is a general consensus that asbestos most likely remains safe when it is intact, it does have a tendency to become “friable,” or easily broken or damaged, as it ages. When this occurs, even a slight impact—such as being struck by a tennis ball or a human hand—can release the microscopic asbestos fibers into the surrounding air, where they can be breathed in.

What exactly is asbestos? A naturally occurring durable mineral with long, thin fibrous crystals, asbestos is found in some rock formations and is also mined in open pits. Most of the asbestos used in the United States has been brought in from Canada. Asbestos has a number of extremely useful properties, which have been recognized—and prized—for centuries. It is not only extremely lightweight, durable and flexible, but it can also withstand heat, flame, electrical conductivity, corrosion, and other biological and chemical processes. Moreover, it can be mixed with building materials such as cement, concrete, metals and plastics, and can even be woven into cloth or spun into yarn. It versatility and abundance made it a valuable product in the construction, milling, shipbuilding and commercial products industries, especially throughout the twentieth century.

Asbestos is made up of long, thin fibers, some of which are soft and curly, others of which are thin, needle-like and sharp. The first category of fibers are more easily expelled from the body, but the needle-like fibers, which help provide the durability and strength for which asbestos is valued, can become embedded in the body’s soft tissues and remain there for years. Once inhaled, these fibers tend to target the mesothelium, which is a protective lining, composed of both inner and outer layers, that surround the body’s internal organs and line the thoracic and abdominal cavities. The mesothelial cells in these layers produce a type of lubricating liquid that is released in between the two layers. This liquid allows organs that move and expand, such as the lungs when a breath is taken, to do so easily and without causing friction when they contact other organs, such as the heart. Mesothelioma is a cancer of these mesothelial cells, usually located around the lungs, in which cells become abnormal and divide uncontrollably. They may then begin to spread and cause damage to the nearby organs, and eventually the lymph system.

It’s estimated that 90 percent of all mesothelioma cases can be directly traced back to asbestos exposure, and that the remaining 10 percent, although there is no direct link, are most likely also due to asbestos inhalation. Although there is no level of exposure which is considered safe, most experts agree that prolonged or repeated exposure, which increases the amount of asbestos particulate accumulating in the body, is more likely to lead to asbestos diseases such as mesothelioma cancer and asbestosis. It’s even possible to transmit the fibers from one person to another, since they can become trapped in fabrics such as clothing. This means that even those who had no direct contact to the material, but merely shared a home with an asbestos worker, may nevertheless be at risk for contracting this devastating disease.

After the diagnosis of this cancer, the patient will work with an oncologist to determine the proper treatment steps to take. Some of the more standard types of treatment include surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy. There are also other treatments available such as clinical trials, which may include natural supplements, and alternative therapies such as acupuncture, hypnosis and massage. Because of delays in diagnosing this cancer, some patients can only be given options to help control the pain and keep them as comfortable as possible.

Unfortunately, asbestos remains a danger in the United States and around the world. This once-ubiquitous building material is in countless homes, office buildings, schools, hospitals, factories and other locations. It may also exist in numerous consumer products in those homes, as well as in cars and ships. Every day, new reports come out about asbestos posing a hazard. If you or someone you love has worked in a trade where asbestos may have been widely used, or if you have had any known contact with an asbestos-containing consumer product, it’s important to make your health care provider aware of this fact, and closely monitor your own health. Some of the symptoms of mesothelioma include such non-specific issues such as coughing, persistent or bloody cough, back or chest pain, difficulty breathing or shortness of breath, fatigue, and unexplained weight loss. If you have a history of asbestos exposure and any of these symptoms, see your doctor immediately. Like many cancers, mesothelioma can be treated if it is caught early enough.

Russia, the world’s leading producer of asbestos, protested as an international forum in Moscow urged a global ban on the use of the material because of health risks.

“It’s just a PR campaign when they say that asbestos can kill,” said Viktor Ivanov, head of the Chrysotile Association, an industry group based in the Russian town of Asbestos in the Ural mountains region.

Yevgeny Kovalevsky, a forum delegate from the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, said: “For the general population, there aren’t significant risks… I haven’t seen a single scientific study that shows the need for a ban.”

Meanwhile, international public health experts at the first World Social Security Forum in the Russian capital urged a global ban, saying that up to 100,000 people die every year of asbestos-related diseases.

This issue is a commentary by Russian Chrysotile Association to the XVIII World Congress on Safety and Health at Work and the International Safety and Health Exhibition (KISS-2008) held in Seoul, South Korea, on June 29 – July 02, 2008.

The Russian chrysotile industry continues the information campaign “A Big Lie of “Ban Asbestos”, which goal is to inform the public about true reasons of the anti-asbestos campaign, about the falsity of objectives of its promoters.
The information campaign is usually in the form of answers to your questions, but this issue is a commentary to the XVIII World Congress on Safety and Health at Work and the International Safety and Health Exhibition (KISS-2008) held in Seoul, South Korea, on June 29 – July 02, 2008.
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LINKS:
Mesothelioma Cancer Org

Breaf History of Hyperthermia
The healing effect of heat treatment was already mentioned in the advanced cultures of the old Egypt (2400 B.C.), but only the medical professionals of the Greek Antique used this therapeutic approach consistently, acknowledged it and called it over-warming (in Greek: Hyperthermia). “Give me the power to produce fever and I heal every illness”, said Parmenides, Greek physician, 540-480 B.C.

Hyperthermia in cancer treatment
Hyperthermia (also called thermal therapy or thermotherapy) is an acute condition which occurs when the body produces or absorbs more heat than it can dissipate. It is usually caused by prolonged exposure to high temperatures. The heat-regulating mechanisms of the body eventually become overwhelmed and unable to effectively deal with the heat, causing the body temperature to climb uncontrollably.

Hyperthermia can also be created artificially by drugs or medical devices. In these instances it may be used to treat cancer and other conditions. Cancer cells are more heat-sensitive than healthy cells and their structure reacts differently to overheating. In 1910 the possibility of overheating in order to increase the radiation effect on malicious tumors was described for the first time. This already well-known and applied method was rediscovered as so called “whole body hyperthermia” in the beginning of the 1960s. Since the 70s a number of studies were run to further investigate this therapy form.

Research has shown that high temperatures (up to 44°C) can damage and kill cancer cells, usually with minimal injury to normal tissues. By killing cancer cells and damaging proteins and structures within cells, hyperthermia may shrink tumors.

Hyperthermia is almost always used with other forms of cancer therapy, such as radiation therapy and chemotherapy. Hyperthermia may make some cancer cells more sensitive to radiation or harm other cancer cells that radiation cannot damage. When hyperthermia and radiation therapy are combined, they are often given within an hour of each other. Hyperthermia can also enhance the effects of certain anticancer drugs, which is mutually strengthened thereby and a healing more likely – the so-called synergistic effect of hyperthermia. It was found out that cytostatic drugs (chemotherapy substances) clearly act more aggressively at temperatures over 40° C than within the range of the normal body temperature.

LINKS:
Methothelioma Cancer
Diagnosis  cancer