National Cancer Institute, Asbestos Exposure: What It Means, What to Do (1978)

"Asbestos Exposure: What It Means, What to Do," a 15-page booklet for workers and their families from the National Cancer Institute of the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (DHEW Publication No. (NIH) 78-1594), issued in 1978. It says that "since the early 1940's, as many as 11 million American workers may have been exposed to concentrations of asbestos dust, including some 4.5 million workers in shipyards" during World War II, and names four diseases: asbestosis, lung cancer, mesothelioma and other cancers. It explains the symptoms, the long delay before disease appears, the added danger of smoking, and where to get medical checks, legal and compensation information, and help, with a state-by-state list of cancer information telephone services.

What it shows

The booklet warns that even brief exposure, "as little as a month or two" in shipyards, had been followed by asbestos disease, and that "members of families of workers heavily exposed to asbestos face an increased risk of developing mesothelioma," probably from dust "brought into the home on the shoes and clothing of workers." It closes with four steps for anyone exposed: stop smoking, get regular checkups, get prompt care for any respiratory illness, and use all protective equipment and safety procedures. It was part of the federal government's 1978 asbestos awareness campaign.

About this copy

This copy comes from Johns-Manville's files and is stamped "Produced JM-83" on each page.