Mesothelioma is a particular form of cancer, often spurred by asbestos exposure. It’s rare. It’s deadly and known to be extremely aggressive, spreading to other areas of the body rapidly. While scientists have a much better understanding of mesothelioma than they ever have before, there’s still a lot we don’t understand about this disease – and there are a lot of myths and misconceptions about mesothelioma that continue to circulate in public.
If you want to protect your health, minimize your mesothelioma risks, or simply better understand the disease, it’s important to be able to recognize and dispel these myths and misconceptions.
Mesothelioma Myths That People Still Believe
These are some of the most pervasive myths and misconceptions about mesothelioma:
1. Mesothelioma is a lung disease only. It’s true that mesothelioma most commonly affects the lungs, or more specifically, the mesothelial lining of the lungs. However, it’s also possible for mesothelioma to develop in other areas of the body. For example, in peritoneal mesothelioma, the cancer affects the lining of the stomach. In pericardial mesothelioma, the cancer affects the lining of the heart.
2. Mesothelioma is just another term for lung cancer. Because of its association with lungs, some people believe that mesothelioma is just another term for lung cancer. While plural mesothelioma can be categorized as a type of cancer that affects the lungs, traditional lung cancer is a different disease.
3. You can get mesothelioma from smoking. Similarly, some people mistakenly assume that mesothelioma can be developed as a result of smoking. Smoking indeed increases your lung cancer risk, and mesothelioma does share many symptoms with traditional lung cancers. However, your risk of developing mesothelioma from smoking is practically zero.
4. Only direct contact with asbestos can cause mesothelioma. In nearly all cases, mesothelioma develops as a result of asbestos exposure. However, many people in the general public assume that only direct contact with asbestos can cause mesothelioma. In reality, inhaling even a single asbestos fibre can greatly increase your mesothelioma risk, so even secondary asbestos exposure can be problematic.
5. Asbestos is now fully banned and never used in the U.S. Now that we understand how risky asbestos is, the material is banned everywhere in this country, right? Unfortunately, that’s not necessarily the case. While asbestos has been banned in many applications, it’s still in industrial use. Asbestos can also be found in more than 3,000 consumer products that could still be in use in your home.
6. Most people working with asbestos knew the risks. It’s tempting to think that everyone working with asbestos in decades past knew about the risks associated with this material. But this doesn’t seem to be the case. We didn’t have a clear understanding of the full risks of asbestos until the 1980s. Many people worked with this material without knowing what they were getting themselves into.
7. Asbestos needs to be removed as soon as possible in all cases. If you find asbestos anywhere, you should remove it right away, right? This is a tempting thought, given the risks associated with this material. However, there are some cases where attempting to remove the asbestos can introduce more risk, as it can disturb the material and send fibers into the air. That’s why it’s always important to hire an asbestos remediation professional to inspect the area before doing anything.
8. A mask is ample to prevent mesothelioma. If you’re working with asbestos, you should wear protective gear. However, don’t fall into the trap of thinking that a simple mask is going to suffice. You need specially rated equipment if you’re going to handle or work in an environment with asbestos.
9. Mesothelioma is exclusive to elderly people. Mesothelioma typically takes many years, and sometimes even decades, to develop. Accordingly, many people who have mesothelioma are elderly. But this isn’t exclusively the case; in fact, there have been documented cases of teenagers developing this deadly disease.
10. Treating mesothelioma is a waste of time. Because mesothelioma is an aggressive, deadly disease that is almost always fatal, people sometimes mistakenly believe that treating mesothelioma is a waste of time. In reality, successful mesothelioma treatments can help people live for years beyond their diagnosis – and improve their quality of life.
11. The risks of mesothelioma have been overstated. We’ve all seen dramatic mesothelioma commercials, but it’s a mistake to think that the risks of asbestos exposure and mesothelioma have been overstated or exaggerated. Every year, roughly 3,000 Americans are diagnosed with mesothelioma – and many of them don’t last a year after getting their diagnosis.
Increasing Your Knowledge
The more you understand about mesothelioma, the better you’ll be able to guard yourself and others against it. You’ll also be in a position to better support anyone in your life who does develop this aggressive disease. We may never be able to cure mesothelioma, and we may never fully understand it, but we can inch closer to these ideals with more research and better public education.
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