Mesothelioma to peak by 2015

Reported by Susan Aldridge, PhD, medical journalist

Deaths from mesothelioma are still rising in Britain but are to peak sooner than previously expected.
Mesothelioma is a devastating form of lung cancer linked to asbestos exposure. In Britain, use of asbestos began to be eliminated from 1980 and it's thought exposures are now negligible. But the rate of mesothelioma continues to rise because the disease can take up to 60 years to develop.

In 1968 there were 153 deaths from mesothelioma and this had gone up to 1,848 by 2001. Now researchers from the Health and Safety Executive together with cancer expert Professor Julian Peto say that the peak will come by 2015 - which is earlier than previously thought. They are currently done a study of lung samples from young men operated on for a collapsed lung which will check whether exposure to asbestos really is negligible. This kind of approach can be - and has been - used in anticipating trends in other forms of cancer. It helps the health service plan how to deal with the future burden of the disease.

Source
British Journal of Cancer 15th February 2005 Volume 92