Asbestos-related disease--a preventable burden

Our plain-English summary of Asbestos-related disease--a preventable burden (Lancet, 2008).

The study

• Journal: Lancet
• Published: 2008;372(9654):1927
• Type of article: Editorial
• Cited by: 7 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher

Summary of the article

This Lancet editorial discussed a ruling by the High Court of England and Wales on Nov 21, 2008. The ruling allowed patients with mesothelioma to claim compensation from the insurers of the companies that employed them when they were exposed to asbestos. Before the ruling, liability lay with the employer at the time the disease presented, often 25–40 years after exposure. The editorial stated that all forms of asbestos are carcinogenic and that mesothelioma has no known cure, with a median survival of 9–12 months from presentation. It cited estimates that 125 million people are at risk from asbestos and that about 90 000 asbestos-related deaths occur worldwide each year. It also cited a figure of 2000 asbestos deaths a year in the UK, expected to peak between 2011 and 2015. It warned that a similar epidemic is likely in developing countries where asbestos is still widely used. It reported that 43 countries have national bans. It noted that Canada, Russia, Pakistan and India opposed adding chrysotile to the Prior Informed Consent list of the Rotterdam Convention. It criticised Canada for exporting 98% of its asbestos to developing countries while limiting its use at home. The editorial concluded that all countries should follow WHO's advice that the only way to eliminate asbestos-related disease is to stop using all types of asbestos worldwide.

PubMed has no abstract for this study, and the article doesn't print one. We wrote this summary from the full article with the help of AI. It is not the authors' wording.

In plain English

This is an unsigned editorial in The Lancet, not a research study. It reported no new data and gave no sources for its figures. It discussed a 21 November 2008 ruling by the High Court of England and Wales. According to the editorial, the ruling lets mesothelioma patients claim compensation from insurers of the companies that employed them when they were exposed. Under the earlier law, liability lay with the employer at the time the disease appeared. The editorial stated that, for mesothelioma, there is no known cure and median survival is 9–12 months from presentation. It said there are about 90 000 asbestos-related deaths worldwide each year, and that in the UK 2000 people die each year from asbestos exposure, a figure it said was set to peak between 2011 and 2015. It reported that Canada, Russia, Pakistan and India opposed adding chrysotile to the Rotterdam Convention's Prior Informed Consent list, and that 98% of Canadian asbestos is exported to developing countries. Citing WHO advice, the editorial concluded that the only way to eliminate asbestos-related disease is to stop using all types of asbestos worldwide.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: Editorial (opinion piece); no original research
• Exposure: Asbestos in general; the editorial names chrysotile and crocidolite and discusses chrysotile mining and export
• Main results:
  • The editorial stated, without citing a source, that there are about 90 000 asbestos-related deaths worldwide each year
  • The editorial stated that mesothelioma has no known cure and that median survival is 9–12 months from presentation
  • The editorial stated that in the UK 2000 people die each year from asbestos exposure, a figure it said was set to peak between 2011 and 2015
  • The editorial reported that Canada, Russia, Pakistan and India opposed adding chrysotile to the Rotterdam Convention Prior Informed Consent list
  • The editorial stated that 98% of Canadian asbestos is exported to developing countries
• The authors' conclusion: The editorial concluded, citing WHO's advice, that the only way to eliminate asbestos-related disease is to stop the use of all types of asbestos worldwide

Topics

The National Library of Medicine indexes this study under subjects our site covers: Mesothelioma.

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Mesothelioma, Carcinogenic, Median Survival, Chrysotile, Informed Consent.

Related studies

• A guide to compensation for asbestos-related diseases — M.G. Britton, D.T. Hughes, et al. (1981)
• Compensation for asbestos-related diseases--the U.K. model — M. Britton (1989)
• Lump sum compensation for asbestos related lung disease — T. Williams, P. Slade, et al. (1998)
• Workers' compensation for nonmalignant asbestos-related lung disease — C. Nevitt, W. Daniell, et al. (1994)
• Asbestos, asbestos-related diseases, and compensation claims in The Netherlands — P. Swuste, A. Burdorf, et al. (2004)
• Hyperventilation in men claiming compensation for benign asbestos-related diseases — G.K. Crompton (2010)

Browse more research in Lancet, or return to medical research.