Abstract
Insufficient evidence exists on the risk of pleural mesothelioma from non-occupational exposure to asbestos. A population-based case–control study was carried out in six areas from Italy, Spain and Switzerland. Information was collected for 215 new histologically confirmed cases and 448 controls. A panel of industrial hygienists assessed asbestos exposure separately for occupational, domestic and environmental sources. Classification of domestic and environmental exposure was based on a complete residential history, presence and use of asbestos at home, asbestos industrial activities in the surrounding area, and their distance from the dwelling. In 53 cases and 232 controls without evidence of occupational exposure to asbestos, moderate or high probability of domestic exposure was associated with an increased risk adjusted by age and sex: odds ratio (OR) 4.81, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.8–13.1. This corresponds to three situations: cleaning asbestos-contaminated clothes, handling asbestos material and presence of asbestos material susceptible to damage. The estimated OR for high probability of environmental exposure (living within 2000 m of asbestos mines, asbestos cement plants, asbestos textiles, shipyards, or brakes factories) was 11.5 (95% CI 3.5–38.2). Living between 2000 and 5000 m from asbestos industries or within 500 m of industries using asbestos could also be associated with an increased risk. A dose–response pattern appeared with intensity of both sources of exposure. It is suggested that low-dose exposure to asbestos at home or in the general environment carries a measurable risk of malignant pleural mesothelioma. © 2000 Cancer Research Campaign
Similar content being viewed by others
Article PDF
Change history
16 November 2011
This paper was modified 12 months after initial publication to switch to Creative Commons licence terms, as noted at publication
References
Agudo A and González CA (1999) Secondary matching: a method for selecting controls in case–control studies on environmental risk factors. Int J Epidemiol 28: 1130–1133
Breslow EN and Day N (1980). Statistical Methods in Cancer Research. Vol 1. The Analysis of Case–control Studies. IARC Scientific Publications No. 32. International Agency for Research on Cancer: Lyon
Camus M, Siemiatycki J and Meek B (1998) Nonoccupational exposure to chrysotile asbestos and the risk of lung cancer. N Eng J Med 338: 1565–1571
Case BW (1998) Non-occupational exposure to chrysotile asbestos and the risk of lung cancer [letter]. N Eng J Med 339: 1001
Dosemeci M, Wacholder S and Lubin JH (1990) Does nondifferential misclassification of exposure always bias a true effect toward the null value?. Am J Epidemiol 132: 746–748
Gardner MJ and Saracci R (1989) Effects on health of non-occupational exposure to airborne mineral fibres. In: Non-Occupational Exposure to Mineral Fibres, Bignon J, Peto J, Saracci R (eds), pp 375–397. IARC Scientific Publications No. 90. International Agency for Research on Cancer: Lyon
Hansen J, de Klerk NH, Musk AW and Hobbs MST (1998) Environmental exposure to crocidolite and mesothelioma. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 157: 69–75
Howel D, Arblaster L, Swinburne L, Schweiger M, Renvoize E and Hatton P (1997) Routes of asbestos exposure and the development of mesothelioma in an English region. Occup Environ Med 54: 403–409
Landrigan PJ (1998) Asbestos: still a carcinogen. N Engl J Med 338: 1619–1620
Luce D, Brochard P, Quenel P, Salomon-Nekiriai C, Goldberg P, Billon-Galland MA and Goldberg M (1994) Malignant pleural mesothelioma associated with exposure to tremolite. Lancet 344: 1777
McDonald AD and McDonald JC (1980) Malignant mesothelioma in North America. Cancer 146: 1650–1656
Magnani C, Terracini B, Ivaldi C, Botta M, Budel P, Mancini A and Zanetti R (1993) Cohort study on mortality among wives of workers in the asbestos cement industry in Casale Monferrato, Italy. Br J Ind Med 50: 779–784
Magnani C, Terracini B, Ivaldi C, Botta M, Mancini A and Andrion A (1995) Pleural malignant mesothelioma and non-occupational exposure to asbestos in Casale Monferrato, Italy. Occup Environ Med 52: 362–367
Magnani C, Ivaldi C, Botta M and Terracini B (1997) Pleural malignant mesothelioma and environmental asbestos exposure in Casale Monferrato, Piedmont. Preliminary analysis of a case-control study. Med Lav 88: 302–309
Marconi A, Cecchetti G and Barbieri M (1989) Airborne mineral fibre concentrations in an urban area near an asbestos-cement plant. In: Non-Occupational Exposure to Mineral Fibres, Bignon J, Peto J, Saracci R (eds), pp. 336–346. IARC Scientific Publications No. 90. International Agency for Research on Cancer: Lyon
Peto J, Decarli A, La Vecchia C, Levi F and Negri E (1990) The European mesothelioma epidemic. Br J Cancer 79: 666–672
Roggli VL and Longo WE (1991) Mineral fibre content of lung tissue in patients with environmental exposures: household contacts vs building occupants. Ann NY Acad Sci 643: 511–518
Sakellariou K, Malamou-Mitsi V, Haritou A, Koumpaniou C, Stachouli C, Dimoliatis ID and Constantopoulos SH (1996) Malignant pleural mesothelioma from non-occupational asbestos exposure in Metsovo (north-west Greece): slow end of an epidemic?. Eur Respir J 9: 1206–1210
Siemiatycki J and Boffetta P (1998) Invited commentary: is it possible to investigate the quantitative relation between asbestos and mesothelioma in a community-based study?. Am J Epidemiol 148: 143–147
Siemiatycki J, Nadon L, Lakhani R, Bégin D and Gérin M (1991) Exposure assessment. In. Risk Factors for Cancer in the Workplace, Siemiatycki J (ed), pp. 46–103. CRC Press: Boca Raton
Spurny KR (1989) Asbestos fibre release by corroded and weathered asbestos-cement products. In: Non-Occupational Exposure to Mineral Fibres, Bignon J, Peto J, Saracci R (eds), pp. 367–371, IARC Scientific Publications No. 90. International Agency for Research on Cancer: Lyon
Teta MJ, Lewinsohn HC, Meigs JW, Vidone RA, Mowad LZ and Flannery JT (1983) Mesothelioma in Connecticut, 1955–1977. Occupational and geographic associations. J Occup Med 25: 749–756
Vianna NJ and Polan AK (1978) Non-occupational exposure to asbestos and malignant mesothelioma in females. Lancet 1: 1061–103
WHO (1998) Chrysotile Asbestos. Environmental Health Criteria. International Programme on Chemical Safety (IPCS). The WHO Environmental Health Criteria No. 203, World Health Organization: Geneva
Yazicioglu S, Ilcayto R, Balci K, Sayli BS and Yorulmaz B (1980) Pleural calcification, pleural mesotheliomas, and bronchial cancers caused by tremolite dust. Thorax 35: 564–569
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
From twelve months after its original publication, this work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/
About this article
Cite this article
Magnani, C., Agudo, A., González, C. et al. Multicentric study on malignant pleural mesothelioma and non-occupational exposure to asbestos. Br J Cancer 83, 104–111 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1054/bjoc.2000.1161
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1054/bjoc.2000.1161
Keywords
This article is cited by
-
Asbestos exposure as an additional risk factor for small duct intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma: a pilot study
Scientific Reports (2023)
-
Environmental asbestos exposure and clustering of malignant mesothelioma in community: a spatial analysis in a population-based case–control study
Environmental Health (2021)
-
Association between mesothelioma and non-occupational asbestos exposure: systematic review and meta-analysis
Environmental Health (2018)
-
Systematic review of quality of life following pleurectomy decortication and extrapleural pneumonectomy for malignant pleural mesothelioma
BMC Cancer (2018)
-
Ovarian cancer in a former asbestos textile factory worker: a case report
Annals of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (2018)