People are still dying of cancer linked to asbestos, the U.S.Centers for Disease Control says, despite decades of regulationsmeant to limit dangerous exposure.
Starting in 1971, the Occupational Safety and HealthAdministration has regulated how much asbestos workers can beexposed to, because it contains tiny fibers that can cause lungdisease or cancer if they are swallowed or inhaled.
The Environmental Protection Agency regulates asbestos too,setting requirements for inspecting, demolishing and renovatingbuildings that contain materials made with asbestos, likeinsulation, vinyl tiles, roofing, shingles, and paint.
But, a recent CDC analysis found that thousands of people arestill dying each year from a type of cancer called malignantmesothelioma that is associated with inhaling asbestos fibers, evenbriefly or in small amounts. Even after decades of regulation,between 1999 and 2015 there were 45,221 mesothelioma deaths in theU.S. The majority of those who died were men.
The greatest increase is among people over 85 years old, whowere likely exposed to asbestos many years ago. It can takeanywhere from two to seven decades for mesothelioma to developafter a person inhales asbestos fibers. And early deaths amongpeople 35 to 65 are down overall.
But, investigators say, the fact that people younger than 55 arestill dying of a disease linked to asbestos means that workers arestill being exposed to dangerous levels of asbestos despite federalregulations.
One source is asbestos that was originally installed years ago,and gets stirred up during a building renovation or a demolitionproject. People exposed in this way are sometimes referred to asthe \"third wave\" of people with asbestos disease, as we havereported. The first two waves were asbestos miners andmanufacturers, and then tradesmen, such as pipe fitters orshipbuilders.
For example, the CDC researchers note that although thereappears to be a general decline in asbestos on worksites between1979 and 2003, \"20 percent of air samples collected in theconstrucÂtion industry in 2003 for compliance purposes exceeded theOSHA permissible exposure limit [for asbestos].\"
And asbestos is still being used in new products. A report onthe findings published Tuesday in the Journal of the AmericanMedical Association, notes \"Asbestos production stopped in theUnited States in 2002, but it is imported into the country toproduce chemicals used in manufacturing common items such as soap,fertilizers, and alkaline batteries.\"
More than 350 metric tons of the mineral were used in 2015 inthe U.S., according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
The CDC analysis also found that mesothelioma deaths were notevenly distributed across the country, despite the fact that thematerial is regulated at the federal level.
It is difficult to say why some states seem to have higher ratesof death associated with asbestos. The authors note that, becausethe analysis is based on death certificate data, it does notnecessarily mean that more people are being exposed to asbestos instates with high rates of mesothelioma deaths, although that ispossible. Alternatively, people may have been exposed to asbestosin a different state than the one where they eventually died.
But the overall number of deaths nationally is concerning. \"Thecontinuing occurrence of malignant mesothelioma deaths underscoresthe need for maintaining asbestos exposure prevention efforts andfor ongoing surveillance,\" the authors write.
For homeowners and consumers who are concerned about asbestos,the EPA has guidelines about how to identify asbestos products andhow to have the material safely removed during a renovation.
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