Asbestos Lung Cancer

Lung cancer, or bronchial carcinoma, occurs in several forms. The most common causes of lung cancer are smoking and asbestos.

Asbestos Related Lung Cancer

This web site has focused on mesothelioma. Not every asbestos-related lung cancer, however, is a mesothelioma. Other thoracic carcinomas, such as adenocarcinoma, are also known to be caused by exposure to asbestos.

The connection between asbestos exposure and lung cancer was noted as early as 1925, and confirmed over the next 70 years by many epidemiologic studies of asbestos-exposed workers. The four main types of commercially used asbestos, chrysotile, amosite, anthophyllite, and mixtures containing crocidolite, have all been associated with an increased risk of lung cancer. About one in seven people who suffer from asbestosis, a lung disease resulting from exposure to asbestos, eventually develop lung cancer.

There is a relationship between cigarette smoking and asbestos exposure in causing lung cancer. Individuals occupationally exposed to asbestos who smoke face a much higher risk than those who do not smoke. According to the National Cancer Institute, evidence suggests that asbestos-exposed workers who quit smoking can reduce their risk of developing lung cancer by 50% within five years of quitting.

Relationships Between Smoking and Lung Cancer

A great deal of attention has been paid to the relationship between smoking and lung cancer. Indeed, many people presume a causal relationship. It is therefore important to understand that while smoking is certainly a potential cause of lung cancer, it is not the sole cause of lung cancer in humans. Statistics have shown that cigarette smoking alone increases the risk of lung cancer by a factor of 10 or so; heavy asbestos exposure alone increases the risk of lung cancer by a factor of 5 or so; and the combination of the two independent carcinogens increases the risk factor by about 50 times.

Thus, you do not merely add the risks posed by asbestos to the risks posed by cigarette smoking. The combination of asbestos and smoking multiplies the risk by an unquantifiable, but significantly greater, factor. This relationship is what is referred to as the “synergistic effect” of smoking and asbestos exposure. In short, one plus one does not equal two-it equals five or more.

What Are The Clinical Signs of Asbestos-Related Lung Cancer?

In general, the clinical features of asbestos-related lung cancer depends upon the state of the tumor when detected. Early detection enhances the prospect of surgical care. Symptoms can include the following:

* Cough
* Chest pain (usually in later stage)
* Difficulty breathing
* Chest x-ray detection of new mass. A tumor may not be visible on a chest x-ray until it is at least 1-0 cm in diameter.
* In its late stages, typical symptoms, signs and syndromes of advanced carcinoma emerge.

Management of an asbestos-related lung cancer depends largely on the staging of the tumor. Early diagnosis and surgical resections of the tumor increase the survival rate. The presence of severe associated asbestosis, however, can affect surgical intervention. Additionally, radiation and chemotherapy may be helpful in the overall therapeutic program

Though mesothelioma isn't officially a form of lung cancer, it is often referred to as such by those who are unfamiliar with the differences between the two. This is a common mistake as many of the symptoms associated with malignant mesothelioma are also generally found in those who have lung cancer, including dry cough, chest pain, and shortness of breath or difficulty breathing. Hence, it isn't unusual for mesothelioma to be mistaken for lung cancer at first glance. However, once testing of the patient is complete, including imaging scans and biopsies, a definitive mesothelioma diagnosis can be made. These similarities also mean it is necessary for anyone who was once exposed to asbestos, on-the-job or elsewhere, to provide their doctor with a clear and concise medical and occupational history so that a prompt diagnosis may be made when mesothelioma symptoms arise.

The major difference, however, between lung cancer and mesothelioma is that mesothelioma develops most often in the pleura, the thin membrane that forms the lining of the lungs, and not in the lungs themselves. In addition, mesothelioma cancer can also develop in other parts of the mesothelial membrane, including the peritoneum (lining of the abdomen in peritoneal mesothelioma) and the pericardium (lining of the heart in pericardial mesothelioma). Lung cancer can spread to other parts of the body but always begins in the lungs.

There may be similarities in how lung cancer and asbestos-caused mesothelioma are treated. Often, chemotherapy is recommended for the treatment of both forms of cancer in order to shrink tumors and kill toxic cancer cells. Radiation may also be part of the treatment protocol for both lung cancer and mesothelioma. Like mesothelioma, those with lung cancer are generally not candidates for surgery unless the disease is detected in its early stages. Both groups of patients, however, may take advantage of clinical trials designed to test new drugs like Alimta®, Carboplatin, Cisplatin, Gemcitabine, and Navelbine, in addition to novel alternative mesothelioma treatments.

Smoking can cause lung cancer and is indeed the most prevalent cause of the disease. There is no correlation between smoking and mesothelioma in a causal sense, but smoking can certainly aggravate the disease, so mesothelioma victims should not smoke. Furthermore, individuals who have asbestosis, another less-serious asbestos-caused illness, should not smoke either as smokers with asbestosis are much more likely to develop mesothelioma in the future.