Proposed Roadmap for Research on Asbestos

By Wade Rawlins

A draft report, prepared by the federal agency responsible for conducting research and making recommendations to protect worker health, summarizes the current state of scientific understanding of asbestos and other mineral fibers and offers a roadmap to explore unresolved questions.

The reappraisal of asbestos and other mineral fibers, written by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, is intended to guide the development of specific research to reduce scientific uncertainties and provide a firm foundation for future policies.

Asbestos has been a prominent public health issue for more than three decades. During the mid- to late-20th century, scientists made advances in the understanding of the serious health effects of inhaling microscopic asbestos fibers.

Yet, questions remain, the report says. For example, due the complexity of asbestos minerals, the scientific literature contains inconsistencies about the definition of the term asbestos for health protection guidelines. And debate continues about whether to include certain non-asbestos mineral fibers under federal asbestos policies.

The results of new research can inform development of new exposure limits and policies for asbestos and other mineral fibers that are based on well-established risk estimates, NIOSH researchers say.

The report sets three goals:

Develop better sampling and analytical methods for asbestos fibers
Develop a clearer understanding of what determines the toxicity of elongated mineral particles
Develop information on workplace exposures to various elongated mineral particles and health risks associated with them.

In the 1970s, federal agencies developed regulatory standards for exposure to airborne asbestos fibers based on evidence of respiratory disease in workers. Since the standards took effect, the use of asbestos has declined substantially and mining of asbestos in the U.S. stopped in 2002. Still, many asbestos products remain in use and new products continue to be manufactured and imported.

Deaths from asbestosis, a chronic disease, increased almost 20-fold from the late 1960s, when NIOSH began tracking them, to the late 1990s, the report says. Since then, they have leveled off at about 1,500 per year in the U.S. and are expected to continue for several more decades.

Meanwhile, annual deaths from malignant mesothelioma, an aggressive cancer caused by exposure to asbestos and other mineral fibers, increased 7 percent between 1999, when the disease began being categorized separately on death certificates, and 2004, the most recent year of complete data. In 2004, 2,657 people died of mesothelioma. The disease usually appears 20 to 30 years after exposure to asbestos.

The report says that scientific studies of workers exposed to asbestos have clearly documented increased risk of respiratory diseases, including lung cancer, mesothelioma and non-malignant abnormalities involving the lining of the lung. In addition, researchers have determined that laryngeal cancer can be caused by asbestos exposure and there is evidence asbestos exposure may cause other diseases including stomach and colorectal cancers and immune disorders.

Despite the decline in use, an estimated 1.3 million employees in construction and general industry still face significant asbestos exposure on the job, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration estimates.

Over time, the nature of workplace exposures has changed. In earlier decades, workers were exposed to asbestos that was used in manufacturing processes such as in textile mills and cement pipe fabrication. Today, the primary exposure is during maintenance activities and de-contamination of buildings containing asbestos. Researchers and policymakers need better projections of the number of workers exposed to asbestos fibers now and in the future, the report says.

Initially, researchers concern and workplace safety standards focused on six commercially used forms of asbestos mineral: chrysotile asbestos; and five amphibole varieties: amosite, crocidolite, actinolite asbestos, anthophyllite asbestos and tremolite asbestos.

As researchers learned more about the link between the dimensions of asbestos fibers and their ability to cause respiratory disease and cancer, they became more interested in other elongated mineral fibers that could be inhaled.

In 1990, NIOSH broadened its definition of airborne asbestos fibers to encompass other elongated mineral fibers, in part because the common method to test for microscopic airborne fibers could not distinguish between the various fibers.

Still, much less is known about other mineral fibers in terms of health effects. More research is needed to determine the toxicity of the elongated mineral fibers, the draft report says.

Populations of special interest include the workers at taconite mines in Minnesota and the talc mines in upstate New York who are exposed to mineral fibers that are non-asbestos.

An ideal outcome of the draft roadmap, the researchers write, would be scientific studies that supported recommendations for exposure limits to elongated mineral fibers to protect workers’ health.

The report currently is being reviewed by The Institute of Medicine of the National Academies, the nation’s advisors on science, medicine and engineering. That is scheduled to be completed by the fall of 2009.

NIOSH Report

Department of Defense Increases Funding for Mesothelioma Research

It’s well known that veterans are at higher risk of asbestos-related diseases because of the wide use of the dangerous mineral fiber in thousands of buildings and Navy ships from World War II until the 1970s.

Now, the U.S. Department of Defense has announced plans to increase spending on research into new ways to combat the fatal disease linked to asbestos exposure.

The Department of Defense’s effort includes funding of several million dollars for three mesothelioma research projects. The funds will support research into early detection of the disease and the development of new treatments, including clinical trials on a vaccine that could improve the prognosis for patients with mesothelioma.

Mesothelioma is a cancer of the lining of the lungs, caused by inhaling asbestos fibers. The microscopic fibers become lodged in the lungs and can lead to development of respiratory diseases including mesothelioma, lung cancer and asbestosis decades later.

Joseph Belluck, a partner in Belluck & Fox, LLP, a New York law firm that specializes in representing victims of asbestos related diseases, said the increase in research funding must be only the start of an effort to find a cure for asbestos-related disease that has killed thousands of veterans.

“Veterans who were willing to fight for their country now must have their country fight for them,” Belluck said.

The shipbuilding acitivities from before World War II until the 1980s exposed thousands of Navy veterans to asbestos exposure on a daily basis.

During World War II, several million people employed in U.S. shipyards and U.S. Navy veterans were exposed to chrysotile asbestos products as well as other forms of asbestos that were used extensively in military ship construction, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs. Asbestos was widely used in shipbuilding to insulate boilers, steam pipes and hot water pipes.

Veterans involved in mining, milling, shipyard work, insulation, demolition of old buildings, carpentry and construction, manufacture of brake linings and clutch facings and manufacture of pipes. Veterans may be eligible for health care and disability compensation if the VA determines the asbestos exposure was related to military service.

Learn more about VA health care and disability compensation at http://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/benefits.asp.

Also, know more about mesothelioma and how you can deal with it.

Vasiliki Kampas - Scholarship Essay Contest

Belluck & Fox, LLP Announces $10,000 College Scholarship Contest

The New York City law firm of Belluck & Fox, LLP and Mesothelioma Help are once again offering the chance for U.S. college students to win up to $5,000 in an essay contest about mesothelioma, a terminal cancer caused by exposure to asbestos.

With a goal to help the educational efforts of students while also raising awareness of mesothelioma and the dangers of asbestos, Belluck & Fox, LLP will award 10 prizes with a total of $10,000 in scholarship money for students 18-years-old or older enrolled in U.S. colleges and universities as of October 1, 2013. Belluck & Fox, LLP is a nationally recognized law firm that represents individuals with mesothelioma and other asbestos-related claims.

Scholarship Prizes

$5,000 – First Prize
$2,500 – Second Prize
$1,250 – Third Prize
$500 – Fourth Prize
$250 – Fifth Prize
$100 – Honorable Mention (there are five Honorable Mention awards)

Students are asked to write an original 750- to 1,000-word essay that addresses a mesothelioma sufferer’s personal story, the history of asbestos use in American industry / manufacturing or the latest developments in medical treatments for mesothelioma. Submissions will be accepted September 1 – October 14.

This year’s essays will be judged by Jan Egerton, a mesothelioma survivor, and Lisa Hyde-Barrett, a thoracic surgery nurse. Judges will look for clear, original essays that are logically organized and well-supported.

Nearly 60 entries were received last year. The first prize winner was Betsy Warren of Attleboro, MA. Ms. Warren was a returning student pursuing a degree in nursing at Rhode Island College. Her story, “The Ugly Elephant,” was about her father’s battle with mesothelioma.

MesotheliomaHelp is one of the Web’s primary resources for information on malignant mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases. The website provides in-depth coverage of the disease, as well as detailed information about the available diagnostic procedures and treatment options for mesothelioma sufferers.

Belluck & Fox, LLP is featured on the list of America’s best law firms, which is published jointly by U.S. News & World Report and Best Lawyers magazine.

Two Gene Therapys Brings Hope to Mesothelioma

University of Hawaii Researchers’ Glowing Bunnies May Someday Bring Genetic Therapy to Mesothelioma Patients

Fluorescent protein taken from a jellyfish DNA and injected into a rabbit’s embryos has produced a litter with several glow-in-the-dark bunnies. Although to many, this may seem like science fiction, to researchers, scientists and physicians this means more effective medicines and cures for diseases like hemophilia, Alzheimer’s, and cancers such as mesothelioma, may be on the horizon.

According to a press release, a team of researchers from the University of Hawaii at Manoa and the University of Istanbul in Turkey used transgenesis to take a genetic marker from one animal and introduce it into another that did not originally have the gene – in this case, from the jellyfish to the rabbit. Although two of the newborn bunnies were left with an eerie glow when seen under black lights, they are otherwise perfectly healthy and are expected to lead full rabbit lives.

Now, the researchers are awaiting the birth of glowing lambs anticipated to be born in November. The same experiment was conducted in the larger mammal to forward the process towards work with humans.

Unfortunately, this type of work is controversial in the United States, and the experiments are being conducted in Turkey. In an interview with KHON2 of Hawaii, Dr. Stefan Moisyadi, lead researcher from UH, said, “At home, there is this hysteria that transgenic animals should not be used for anything.” But he adds, “The benefits in doing it [the experiments] in large animals is to create bio-reactors that basically produce pharmaceuticals that can be made a lot cheaper.”

Gene therapy has been touted as the “new frontier” in medicine and is offering hope to patients and doctors alike that once untreatable diseases, including mesothelioma, may now be cured. The cost, however, is often extremely high. Dr. Moisyadi told Independent.co.uk, “we can make those enzymes a lot cheaper in animals with barrier reactives rather than a factory that will cost billions of dollars to build.”

Tracking Asbestos and Other Environmental Pollutants

Mesothelioma is just one of the diseases that is caused by exposure to environmental pollutants. The National Cancer Institute explains that when asbestos fibers are breathed in, they may get trapped in the lungs and remain there for a long time. Over time, these fibers can accumulate and cause scarring and inflammation, which can affect breathing and lead to serious health problems. Mesothelioma, lung cancer and asbestosis are all associated with asbestos exposure.

The research with glowing animals can also be used to help track pollutants as they travel through the body. Researchers from the University of Tennessee have developed transgenic bioluminescent zebrafish that were engineered exclusively to emit a glow when elevated levels of ammonia or nitrate are present in the aquarium and enter the fishes’ bodies. These “environmental reporters” can lead the way to produce other processes that can detect a large number of chemicals or toxins, potentially screening processes.

While all of this research still requires many more years of studies and work in the labs, genetic research appears to be pointing to many promising breakthroughs in the medical field.

About the Researchers

UH Emeritus Professor Ryuzo Yanagimachi who is the founder of the UH Manoa Institute for Biogenesis Research helped set up the initial experiment with the Turkish researchers. Yanagimachi, according to UH, is “recognized around the world as the scientist whose early work with animals laid the foundation for the development of in vitro fertilization in humans.” He also invented the now common technique used in fertility clinics for inserting sperm into an egg. Dr. Stefan Moisyadi, associate professor, then took over the experiment and is the lead researcher on the project.

Know more about Mesothelioma here.

Sources:

University of Hawaii at Manoa
http://www.uhm.hawaii.edu/news/article.php?aId=5906
Independent.co.uk
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/team-of-scientists-create-cloned-glow-in-the-dark-rabbits-8756928.html
KHON2 of Hawaii
https://www.khon2.com/news/local-news/researchers-study-nature-of-sharks-in-hawaii-waters_2018030911381013/1025616452

Mesothelioma Attorney Joseph Belluck Honored by New Yorkers for Patient & Family Empowerment

Joseph W. Belluck was one of the honorees of New Yorkers for Patient & Family Empowerment at its spring reception entitled, “Making Law Work for Health Consumers.” The event held on June 5 was hosted by Mark Green, a nationally known consumer rights advocate/author, and former NYC Public Advocate and Consumer Affairs Commissioner.

Belluck, a founding partner of the Belluck & Fox law firm, LLP, a nationally recognized law firm with attorneys who represent individuals with asbestos and mesothelioma claims, was honored for his legal work against tobacco and asbestos companies and for advocating for patient rights on a State Medicaid Redesign Team work group. Governor Cuomo established the Medicaid Redesign Team to bring together stakeholders and experts from throughout the state to work cooperatively to reform the system and reduce costs.

According to its website, New Yorkers for Patient & Family Empowerment, Inc (also known as “Patient & Family”), a not-for-profit organization, was formed to focus greater attention on patient safety and to counteract the factors that make it harder for patients and their loved ones to achieve greater safety in healthcare. The organization seeks to:

Empower patients and their loved ones in interacting with the healthcare system;
Strengthen public access to information on patient safety; and
Improve the quality and safety of healthcare in New York.

The other honorees Wednesday night were:

Elisabeth Benjamin – Community Service Society’s Vice President of Health Programs and founder of the Legal Aid Society’s Health Law Unit
Janet Foley – Director of Health & Safety at CSEA Local 1000 AFSCME; advocate for safe lifting & moving in healthcare (“Safe Patient Handling”)

Belluck is AV-rated by Martindale-Hubbell and is listed in Best Lawyers in America, New York Magazine’s “Best Lawyers in the New York Area” and in Super Lawyers.

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