Asbestos High Ratio Of First to New Wave Mesothelioma Victims.

Nov. 9, 2011 - PRLog -- The number of deaths from mesothelioma in the UK is still on the rise. Latest figures from the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) show a 3.2 per cent rise from 2,249 in 2008 to 2,321 deaths in 2009. Categorised as “Second” and “Third Wave’  victims of the incurable malignant  cancer, 2,000 diagnosed cases of mesothelioma are still recorded annually and over 1.8 million people continue to be exposed to asbestos uncovered in thousands of homes and work premises.

During the twentieth century, “First Wave” victims of exposure were the men and women who worked in the many different types of factories, engineering works, vehicle assembly lines, shipyards, construction and manufacturing industries where asbestos material was commonly used in products as a heat insulation and fire retardant.

Failure to respond to the growing evidence of the fatal health risks ( as far back as the 1920s)  accompanied by companies withholding asbestos awareness information from their workforce has left a continuing legacy of suffering by the many thousands of men and women who eventually succumbed to asbestosis diseases.

The long latency period of between 15 to 50 years from first exposure to the eventual emergence of mesothelioma or asbestosis symptoms, when the cancerous tumours had spread to an advanced stage, too often means the elderly patient would only have a 4 –12 months survival rate.

“Second” and “Third Wave’  victims refer to domestic property owners who are exposed to asbestos during home renovations or those employed as builders, carpenters, painters and decorators, plumbers, electricians, plasterers, tilers and property clearance / demolition services.

Included are individuals working in public services where accidental exposure can occur in schools, hospitals and libraries, etc. This category extends to the emergency services, such as fireman and ambulance crews, called to a premises containing asbestos exposed to the air by fire, water or structural damage.

The building industry continued to use white chrysotile asbestos in homes and workplaces until the 1980s and it is now more well known that asbestos discovered in a worn or fragile condition is highly susceptible to releasing the deadly fibre dust particles into the surrounding air. Once inhaled, the fibres lodge permanently in the pleura ( lung linings), the irritation eventually causing scarring, thickening, effusion or mesothelioma cancer.

Ongoing research conducted in the last 40 years has confirmed that those men and women who experienced prolonged exposure to asbestos were three times more likely to develop cancers such as mesothelioma. A ratio of 3 to 1 in a sample group investigating a comparatively rare asbestos cancer would be considered highly disproportionate when compared to the normal population figure.

The HSE predict that 5,000 people will die from asbestos exposure each year by 2015 and a further 45,000 mesothelioma deaths can be expected by 2050.

Visit http://www.asbestosvictimadvice.com for more information and advice.

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