Mesothelioma latency periods are often as long as fifty years for many individuals who were at one time exposed to the mineral asbestos. Though there is still significant mystery surrounding how asbestos causes mesothelioma, the period of time that passes until cancer develops is becoming more predictable. This period, known as the mesothelioma latency period, for an individual who has a history of asbestos exposure can vary greatly. As more cases of this deadly, occupation-related cancer surface around the world, more information is learned about why it may take so long to develop.
The extended mesothelioma latency period is thought to be responsible for the continuing cases of mesothelioma. This is important information because asbestos was banned in most places in the 1970’s and has been under strict regulation since global organizations officially recognized its dangers. The extended latency period explains the continual cases because many workers and their house mates were exposed to asbestos up until that time.
Beginning as early as the late 1800’s, medical scientists reported a number of cases of possible asbestos related lung disease in their autopsy reports. During the century since asbestos was first linked to lung cancer, the mesothelioma latency period has been but one of the many facets of mystery surrounding the cancer. Some of the most important revelations about mesothelioma have involved the method by which a person comes into contact with asbestos.
Mesothelioma Latency Period: Asbestos Exposure and Mesothelioma
Mesothelioma cancer develops in the mesothelium; a protective layer of cells surrounding the body cavity and everything within it. Each part of the mesothelium is further defined based on the particular structure which it covers.
There are three parts of the mesothelium that are especially susceptible to mesothelioma:
- the pleura surrounding the lungs and lining the internal chest wall
- the pericardium that surrounds the heart
- the peritoneum which surrounds the abdominal organs and lines the internal abdominal walls
The mesothelioma latency period refers to the amount of time it takes for cancer to develop after the individual has been exposed to the carcinogen (cancer causing agent). The most common exposure hazard among mesothelioma patients is asbestos, a naturally occurring mineral that is useful for its heat resistant properties; specifically the inhalation or digestion of the fibers that make up the mineral cause mesothelioma.
Asbestos is known to cause non-descript lung illnesses since the Greek’s noted coughing and lung disease in ancient times, when asbestos was praised for the same “magical” properties that make it useful today. Between the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, contemporary medical experts who conducted autopsies on workers who handled asbestos noted significant and similar lung damage among the laborers. However, the extended mesothelioma latency period was unknown at the time and it is certain that many cases of asbestos related lung disease remained uncorrelated during this time.
By the mid-1900’s, most global nations that mined asbestos accepted its devastating effects on the respiratory system and its use was banned in the 1970’s in most nations. In the United States, asbestos mining and production were never banned; although the EPA demanded its discontinued use. Instead, the United States committed to create no new uses for the mineral and employed the personal protection and safety measures adopted by other nations.
Since asbestos was directly linked to lung cancers, diseases, and mesothelioma specifically, the number of mesothelioma related deaths were expected to drop. However, due to the mesothelioma latency period it will take more than fifty years before the world will experience a significant decline in mesothelioma cases. The year 2020, fifty years following the court actions, should be the peak of malignant mesothelioma globally. Medical experts are expecting a significant decline in new cases following that marker.
It is important to note that not all cases of mesothelioma are known to be linked to asbestos fibers, though most are. Also, not all individuals who have been exposed to asbestos fibers will develop mesothelioma. It is difficult to tell until many years have passed, so sharing this information with a doctor is very important. The mesothelioma latency period only indicates the length of time for cancer to develop, the symptoms of mesothelioma may develop much later. Regular screening for cancer is recommended for anyone with a known exposure to any carcinogen. Some typical occupations that were or are at risk for exposure are indicated in the table below.
| Mesothelioma Latency Period and Occupational Hazards |
|---|
| Occupation | Possible Exposure Situations |
| Construction and Finishing | • Drywall, plaster, mud, textures, joint compounds • Vinyl tiles, adhesives, sheets, acoustics • Roof shingles, building siding materials • Roofing materials including tars and felts • Paneling, counters, flooring • Insulations |
| Plumbing and Electricity | • Piping, caulking, gaskets • Pipe insulators • Duct work piping and connectors |
| Automotive | • Brake pads, clutch plates, fluid additives • Shaft Packing and some heat resistant lubricants |
| Emergency Responders | • Fireproof materials, including fire suits • Fire doors, fire blankets |
| Miscellaneous Occupations | • Curtains, castings, and filters for beverages and liquid particulates |
Mesothelioma Latency Period Might Be Finally Explained
Medical experts have spent decades studying mesothelioma. It is well known that asbestos and mesothelioma are linked. However, it is still unclear why the mesothelioma latency period can be up to fifty years. It is also still unclear how asbestos causes cancer in the first place. The mesothelioma latency period may be much extended due to the way asbestos fibers come to exist in a mesothelium in the first place. Asbestos fibers aren’t often discovered in the mesothelium where mesothelioma is found and asbestos fibers destroy cells with which they come into contact and dead cells cannot mutate into cancer. It is surmised that cell damage to nearby healthy cells, not death, is what ultimately leads to cancer. Alternatively, other studies have revealed that when a cell dies due to contact with an asbestos fiber, it releases a neuron which may travel and infect nearby cells. All of these processes take time to occur, however brand new research indicates that the mesothelioma latency period isn’t related to the process by which mesothelioma develops at all.
Medical experts are conducting new studies related to the length of exposure and the amount of particulates to which an individual may be exposed. No one really knew why one worker could develop asbestos related mesothelioma within two decades while it took a different individual nearly fifty years to develop the cancer. Their study has provided evidence that the mesothelioma latency period is far shorter for those individuals that were exposed to great amounts of asbestos dust, even if the exposure was for a shorter period of time. On the other side of the study, individuals who were exposed to smaller amounts of asbestos fibers over a longer period of time experienced a more extended mesothelioma latency period.
