Asbestos News Roundup: 11.26.09

November 26th, 2009. By LucyC

A roundup of recent asbestos-related news and information that you should be aware of. 

Asbestos Screening: The Building Trades National Screening Program

The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is currently funding the Worker Health Protection Program (WHPP) that provides free medical screenings for current and former workers at numerous DOE sites, specifically: Gaseous Diffusion Plants (GDPs) in Oak Ridge, TN, Paducah, KY and Portsmouth, OH; the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) in Idaho Falls, ID; Oak Ridge National Lab (ORNL) and Y-12 in Oak Ridge, TN and two closure sites: Mound in Miamisburg, OH and Fernald in Harrison, OH.

Because the goal of the program is to detect early stage work-related illness, the screenings are designed to identify adverse health outcomes related to on the job exposure to a number of toxic substances including asbestos. Asbestos is a known carcinogen and can cause mesothelioma, a fatal form of cancer, as well as reparatory illness such as asbestosis. 

The WHPP is managed by Queens College of the City University of New York. You can see their screening calendar here  

Construction Workers at Risk for Asbestos Exposure

According to the United States Department of Labor an estimated 1.3 million employees in the construction and general industry face significant asbestos exposure on the job. Those most at risk work within the construction industry, with some of the heaviest exposure occurring during asbestos removal, renovations, or demolition. 

Employees are also at high risk for asbestos exposure during the manufacture of asbestos products, and there are more than 3,000 such products on the market, including textiles, friction products, insulation, caulking, and other building materials.

Asbestos Mesothelioma and National Lung Cancer Month  

The National Lung Cancer Partnership, “a non-profit organization dedicated to decreasing deaths due to lung cancer,” not only provides a wealth of useful information on lung cancer, but also reminds us of the need for increased awareness of this disease. Why? Because…

• “Lung cancer kills more than 160,000 people annually – more people than breast, colon and prostate cancers combined.
• Lung cancer is responsible for more than 28% of all cancer-related deaths every year.
• More people who have never smoked die from lung cancer than do people from AIDS or liver cancer or ovarian cancer.
• Risk factors for lung cancer other than those from smoking include lung scarring from tuberculosis, and occupational or environmental exposures to radon, second-hand smoke, radiation, asbestos, air pollution, arsenic and some organic chemicals.
• Only 16 percent of lung cancer patients are diagnosed before their disease has spread to other parts of their bodies, (e.g., regional lymph nodes and beyond), compared to more than 50 percent of breast cancer patients, and 90 percent of prostate cancer patients.”

                                                                                              Source: Lung cancer awareness.org

Tags: Asbestos, Asbestos Mesothelioma

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