Asbestos: It may be Lurking inside of You

Washington, DCWatch what happens whenever asbestos is discovered inside a building: people scatter, the building is closed down, and workers swarm over the site in full masks and heavy clothing to deal with the evil stuff.

It's a death sentence in powdered form. We know that now. How society managed NOT to know about the deadly effects of asbestos exposure forty years ago when it was in widespread use in much of the world, is a debate for the gods.

For now, we're left to sniff it out, and get the asbestos before it gets us.

It's gotten a lot of us.

If your house was built before 1970, you may have it in the wallboard (a white or grey material, with a fibrous look to it), up in the attic, or wrapped around your water pipes. As insulation, asbestos was cheap and effective. Schools used it. Public buildings, too. Hospitals. It was everywhere - across North America, Japan, Australia and throughout Europe, in things such as shingles, floor and ceiling tiles, even textured paint. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has long since sounded the alarm on asbestos, banning many products made with it. Older buildings known to contain asbestos are being renovated.

But it's already too late for some.

Mark Hudson (not his real name) was an employee with the West Clermont School District in Ohio. Twenty-five years ago he was given the chore of stripping pipes at one of the schools. He did not know at the time that the pipes were covered in asbestos.

He was not given safety gear (no one thought it was necessary), got sick ten years after being exposed, and eventually died of Asbestosis.

The number of workers exposed to asbestos between 1940 and 1980 is staggering: 27 million. Ongoing renovations and asbestos removal has the potential to expose a further 1.3 million workers, many of whom are not properly protected.

Worse, is that people who have Asbestosis or Malignant Mesothelioma, the two most common results of asbestos exposure, may never know they have it. Health effects from asbestos can remain dormant in the body for years. Sometimes, symptoms do not appear until upwards of four decades after exposure.

It is almost always fatal.

Mark Hudson thought he had pneumonia. The doctors thought he did, too - until his breathing problems continued, and a lung specialist confirmed he was suffering from Asbestosis. The disease is caused when asbestos fibres are inhaled, and scar tissue develops. The formation of massive scar tissue can inhibit the lungs to properly expand, reducing lung capacity, and your ability to breathe. In severe cases, a decrease in total lung capacity can bring about a heart attack.

Heart failure is written on Mark Hudson's death certificate. His widow, Nancy, knows better. But she is being stonewalled in her efforts to seek compensation, because of incorrect information.

Given the widespread use of asbestos, and the potential for a years-long delayed onset of Asbestosis and Malignant Mesothelioma - due consideration is not too much to ask. Employers need to warrant a safe work environment, and manufacturers have to stand behind their products.

If you have been exposed to asbestos - or suspect you have - there may be grounds for a claim. Congress is giving consideration to the creation of a U.S. $140 billion fund to compensate victims of asbestos exposure.

Symptoms include shortness of breath, fatigue, dry cough, or 'crackles' at the base of the lungs. If you have any of these, consult a physician. Asbestos has been also linked to lung cancer, and cancer of the oesophagus, larynx, stomach, colon and rectum.

There is no known cure.