Mesothelioma is an aggressive form of cancer that 3,000 people in the United States are diagnosed with every year. The average age of diagnosis is 72, and most people will live for around two years before they succumb to their illness.

Mesothelioma is directly linked to asbestos exposure and is one or more tumours in the tissue lining of organs such as the stomach, heart, and lungs. Inhaling microscopic asbestos fibres, which then become lodged in that lining, is the most common cause for this form of cancer.  

In most cases, mesothelioma affects older people who were exposed to asbestos in the workplace before many people knew it was hazardous to their health. Symptoms may not have appeared for decades after initial or cumulative exposure.

However, we are now reaching an era where young people are receiving peritoneal and pleural mesothelioma diagnosis, not from occupational exposure, but a myriad of other causes. Secondary exposure from parents and environmental factors could also be to blame.

Mesothelioma from secondary exposure

You don’t have to be working with asbestos to be at risk of exposure. Deanna Trevarthen was 45 when she died in 2019 of mesothelioma and was the youngest woman in New Zealand to be diagnosed with it and subsequently lose her life. She never worked with it, nor was she in an industry that exposed her to it.

However, she would play with her dad when he returned home after work from his job as an electrician, and he would hug her in his work clothes. She also played on his worksites, which could have increased her exposure risk too.

Deanna’s case was a landmark one but highlighted the genuine risk that a simple hug from someone who had been working with asbestos could have.

Mesothelioma from environmental factors

Mesothelioma could also become more common in young people due to environmental factors, such as school buildings with asbestos building materials, and even some children’s products.

There are over 2,500 schools in New Zealand, and the likelihood of at least some of them containing asbestos is reasonably high. It’s up to each school to manage their asbestos exposure risk, but no school or building with asbestos products will ever be 100 per cent safe for its occupants. The best course of action, in this case, is to hire an asbestos expert to identify any hazards and undertake safe removal practices.

But it’s not only buildings with this material that can put people at risk. Some toys and products targeted toward children can too. Johnson & Johnson talc powder, for example, has been hauled over the coals for trace amounts of asbestos. The FDA confirmed it was also found in children’s makeup. 

How you can protect yourself and your family from this cancer type

It was as early as 1897 that doctors started to realise that asbestos dust could have an adverse effect on health. A report was also released in 1898 that outlined “widespread damage and injury of the lungs, due to the dusty surrounding of the asbestos mill”.

However, asbestos sales didn’t cease in New Zealand until 1984, which meant that several thousand New Zealanders had been exposed and put at risk of mesothelioma and other related conditions up until that time.

However, now that more people are aware of the risks and asbestos is no longer present in new building materials, it can be a case of managing the risk when the time comes to remove hazardous building materials or undertake home renovations.

The best approach to asbestos removal for the protection of your family is hiring an expert. The right licensed asbestos removal expert can help with a management plan and survey, project management, sampling, asbestos removal, and soil removal.

If your asbestos removal task fits within the confines of the law to manage without a license, then carry on with the utmost care.

Don’t underestimate asbestos

Around 90,000 people die from asbestos-related conditions annually, which means there is no room for error when it comes to exposure. Whether you’re old, young, work with asbestos, or could be at risk of secondary exposure or exposure through the environment, never underestimate the dangers of this hazardous mineral. If you require assistance with asbestos identification or removal, consult an expert.