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Friday 19, November, 2004 09:50 - 12:30, International Conference Hall Plenary Session 1 Global Health Impact of Asbestos: Urgent Action is needed Chairs: Kogi Kazutaka and Laurie Kazan-Allen Claudio Bianchi, Tommaso Bianchi Center for the Study of Environmental Cancer - Italian League against Cancer, Monfalcone, Italy ABSTRACT: The principal feature in mesothelioma geography is the lack of data. Reliable figures on the incidence/mortality of/from mesothelioma are available for about 15% only of the world population. In particular, mesothelioma epidemiology is scarcely known for a majority of the big asbestos producers/consumers countries. Where data are available, marked variations in incidence are observed. During the last decades mesothelioma incidence showed a progressive increase in various industrialized countries, reaching the highest values in Australia, Belgium, and the UK. In such countries annual crude incidence rates are around 30 cases per million. At the other extreme, crude incidence rates of 0.6 and 0.7 cases per million are reported respectively from Tunisia and Morocco. Japan showed a tremendous rise in mortality from mesothelioma during the last few years. In all the countries a high ratio pleura/peritoneum is generally observed. Incidence is markedly higher among men than among women, and it varies substantially from one occupational category to another. Some occupational groups (for instance maritime trades, non asbestos textile industries) have only recently been recognized as categories at risk for mesothelioma. At national level, wide variations are obser ved among the different areas. The above characteristics may largely be explained by differences in the asbestos use. The latency periods (time intervals between first exposure to asbestos and diagnosis of mesothelioma) are considerably longer than previously reported and currently appreciated. In large series mean latency periods were around 50 years. An inverse relationship between intensity of exposure to asbestos and duration of latency period has been observed. Predictions on the future trend of mesothelioma epidemic should take into account the fact that generally latency periods are longer than 20-30 years. The mesothelioma wave consequent on the very high world asbestos consumption occurred in 1970s has yet to be seen. |