Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma Linked to Asbestos?

March 24th, 2010. By janem

My close friend was recently diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma-a cancer that began as a tumor in his stomach. Denys just turned 50; he’s a non-smoker and fitness freak. Not even two months after his diagnosis Denys barely has the energy to buy groceries from the corner store-although that could also be due to the chemotherapy kicking the hell out of him.

The doctors can’t explain how or why he has this type of cancer, but his gastrointestinal specialist said that these types of tumors are often seen in people who have worked with asbestos years ago.

“From 1980 to 1995 I worked in home renos, ripping out walls and replacing vermiculite insulation in ceilings with fiberglass,” says Denys. ” Back in those days people weren’t aware; we had no idea.”  (Although mining stopped near Libby, Montana in 1990, The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health reports that vermiculite is still used throughout the world. It was contaminated with asbestos and asbestos-like fibers. Workplace exposure to these fibers caused-and is still causing– a serious health problem.)

According to asbestos.com, there have been several studies that have suggested a connection between lymphoma and exposure to asbestos, but it also says that no studies have produced conclusive evidence of a connection. The Lancet, however, reported otherwise. “An epidemiological case-control study of non-Hodgkin’s lymphomas revealed an excess of male patients with large-cell lymphomas primary to the gastrointestinal tract and oral cavity who had evidence of substantial exposure to asbestos.”

And WebMD states that risk factors to non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma include regular exposure to certain chemicals, including arsenic, lead, vinyl chloride, asbestos, insect and weed killers…

It has long been known that cancer research has classified asbestos, a fibrous, fire-resistant mineral, as a human carcinogen. The esteemed National Cancer Institute reported that “Many experts agree that a link between asbestos exposure and gastrointestinal cancer exists and a study in Norway found that lighthouse keepers who drank water tainted with asbestos had an elevated incidence of stomach cancer. Like many asbestos-related illnesses, gastrointestinal cancer patients may not demonstrate symptoms of the disease until the cancer has spread.”

Denys lives in British Columbia, where an analysis by BC construction unions in 2008 concluded that 300 workers will die of asbestos-related disease each year over the next five years. And most doctors in Canada have no knowledge of this connection! One possible reason for the health community’s lack of awareness is under-reporting of work-related diseases, which is due to several factors, including a lack of awareness among workers and  employers that certain illnesses are associated with a person’s job.

Amazingly, asbestos exposure is still a huge problem in North America. “My friend just bought a heritage home and last week she was ripping out the ceiling and walls with just a scarf over her face-l encouraged her to get a proper respirator,” says Denys.

“There are thousands of British Columbians who have asbestos fibres in their lungs and don’t even know they’ve been exposed to the toxin,” said Wayne Laxton, business manager for the BC Heat and Frost Insulators and Allied Workers, who added that new research shows at least 300 asbestos related deaths this year and every year for the next five.

Most of the occupational disease deaths currently accepted by the Workers Compensation Board in BC are tied to asbestos, and it’s likely the numbers are similar in the US. Asbestos was widely used in both Canada and the US to insulate buildings from weather conditions and sound until the mid-1980s. (More than 6,000 fatal occupational injuries occur in the United States each year, and  workers older than sixty-five have the highest rates of occupational-injury deaths, possibly because diseases such as asbestosis and mesothelioma–and possibly non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma–can take upwards of 20 or 30 years to manifest.)

One lawsuit in the Oregon courts between 2006 and 2007 regarding asbestos exposure was the case of Robert Bush v. Kaiser Gypsum. Mr. Bush had been exposed to asbestos-containing building materials while working in Portland and consequently developed lung disease and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. “Apparently there is a long-standing class action lawsuit against the asbestos industry so I’m going to look into it,” says Denys.

This was posted on Wednesday, March 24th, 2010 at 12:32 pm and is filed under Asbestos Mesothelioma . Feel free to respond, or trackback. Read our comments policy.