Mesothelioma associated with use of drywall joint compound: a case series and review of literature

Our plain-English summary of Mesothelioma associated with use of drywall joint compound: a case series and review of literature, by J. Dahlgren, T. Peckham (International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health, 2012).

The study

• Authors: J. Dahlgren, T. Peckham
• Journal: International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health
• Published: 2012;18(4):337-43
• Type of article: Review
• Cited by: 2 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher

Abstract

Background: Drywall joint compound contained asbestos fibers, primarily chrysotile, in the 1950s through the 1970s. Workers in a variety of construction trades and homeowners were exposed to respirable asbestos from the use of these products, including during handling, mixing, sanding, and sweeping. Disturbance of in-place asbesto-containing joint compound continues to be a potential source of exposure during demolition or repair of wallboard. Studies from the 1970s and 1980s report air fiber measurements above current and historic regulatory limits during intended usage, and typical asbestos-related disease in drywall construction workers.

Objectives: We present three cases of mesothelioma in which the only known exposure to asbestos was from joint compound and review the literature on exposure circumstances, dose and fiber types.

Conclusions: Physicians treating mesothelioma patients should obtain a history of exposure to these products during work or home remodeling.

In plain English

This article reported three cases and reviewed earlier literature. The authors described three men with mesothelioma whose only reported asbestos exposure was to drywall joint compound. Case 1 mixed, applied, sanded and swept joint compound while remodeling homes in the 1970s and was diagnosed in 2005. He refused chemotherapy and died. Case 2 was an apartment maintenance worker for about 20 years, from the 1950s to the 1970s. He developed a pleural effusion in 1999 that was diagnosed as mesothelioma in 2001, and he died soon after. Case 3 was exposed as a child to joint compound dust that his father brought home on his clothes. He was diagnosed in 2000 at age 32 and died despite chemotherapy and surgery. No autopsies were done and no lung tissue was examined, so fiber type and amount are unknown. Asbestosis was not seen. The authors stated that other exposures could not be excluded, and Case 2 also did plumbing and electrical work. The authors concluded that asbestos-containing drywall products are a plausible cause of mesothelioma.

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: Case series of three mesothelioma cases combined with a review of literature on exposure circumstances, dose and fiber types
• Who was studied: Three men with mesothelioma, diagnosed between 2000 and 2005, whose only reported asbestos exposure was from drywall compound
• Exposure: Asbestos-containing drywall joint compound from the 1950s to the 1970s. Case 1 mixed, applied, sanded and swept it while remodeling homes. Case 2 worked with drywall products as an apartment maintenance worker. Case 3 had take-home exposure from his father's clothes, from his birth in 1968 to 1974.
• Main results:
  • Case 1, who worked with joint compound from 1968 and in home remodeling in the 1970s, was diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2005 from tissue obtained by a thoracoscopic procedure. He refused chemotherapy and died a short time later.
  • Case 2, a maintenance worker for about 20 years at apartment complexes in California and Oregon, presented with a pleural effusion in 1999 that was diagnosed as mesothelioma in 2001. He declined all therapy and died quickly after diagnosis.
  • Case 3 presented in 2000 at age 32. A biopsy showed epithelioid mesothelioma with a few spindle cells. He had chemotherapy and debulking surgery and died in spite of treatment.
  • Asbestosis was not seen in any of the three cases.
  • In the reviewed literature, a study by Rohl et al. (not this study) detected asbestos in all ten industrial joint compound products and in five of 15 consumer patching compound products tested.
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that, based on current knowledge, exposure to asbestos-containing drywall products is a plausible cause of mesothelioma.
• Limitations the authors state:
  • Other asbestos exposures cannot be excluded in any of the three cases.
  • Case 2 also did plumbing and electrical maintenance work. The authors note that some plumbers and electricians have been reported to have asbestos exposure, but no data on this case's exposure from those tasks were available.
  • No autopsies were performed and no lung tissue was evaluated, so there is no information on fiber quantity or type.

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, Joint Compound, Chrysotile.

Related studies

• Re-creation of historical chrysotile-containing joint compounds — G.P. Brorby, P.J. Sheehan, et al. (2008)
• More on the dynamics of dust generation: the effects of mixing and sanding chrysotile, calcium carbonate, and other components on the characteristics of joint-compound dusts — D.W. Berman, G.P. Brorby, et al. (2012)
• Potential artifacts associated with historical preparation of joint compound samples and reported airborne asbestos concentrations — G.P. Brorby, P.J. Sheehan, et al. (2011)
• Exposures from chrysotile-containing joint compound: evaluation of new model relating respirable dust to fiber concentrations — G.P. Brorby, P.J. Sheehan, et al. (2013)
• Contribution of environmental fibers to respiratory cancer — G.S. Omenn, J. Merchant, et al. (1986)
• Worker exposure to asbestos during removal of sprayed material and renovation activity in buildings containing sprayed material — N.W. Paik, R.J. Walcott, et al. (1983)

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