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History of mesotheliomaMesothelioma info: 6000 B.C, - nowThe history of mesothelioma is bound up with the history of asbestos use since mesothelioma is almost always linked to asbestos exposure.
The use of asbestos, which is a “wonder” ingredient in many products due to its durability & resistance, dates back to 4,000 B.C. The Ancient Greeks were aware of this mineral & assigned the name “asbestos” to it which literally means “indestructible.” It is probable that the ancients who contacted asbestos contracted what we now call mesothelioma were not aware of the connection.
As manufacturing boomed in the 1890’s, asbestos use skyrocketed. Many workers were unknowingly exposed to disease causing asbestos particles for the first time. The modern history mesothelioma starts here.
Prudential Life Insurance executives refused to insure asbestos workers because of the emerging facts about asbestos exposure. The first lawsuit connected to asbestos exposure was initiated in 1929. By the 1930s, asbestos companies were aware of the asbestos - mesothelioma info. They either tried to hush up news & paid off several complainants. Some company executives showed a much greater concern for immediate profits than for their workers health. By the 1950s, asbestos companies, well aware of the risks attached to working with asbestos, resisted efforts to attach warning labels to products. In 1964, Dr. Irving Selikoff publishes a study of asbestos workers showing that they suffer from a much greater incidence of asbestosis & cancers, including mesothelioma than the general population.
Much the same dynamics played out in the 1980s with a subsequent ban on asbestos products followed by a reversal of the ban. In the 1990s, many companies in the asbestos industry were excoriated by courts & media for their willful withholding of info about the effects of asbestos exposure The new millennium saw legislative efforts to compensate victims while protecting companies with caps on lawsuits & restrictions on filing of lawsuits. At this point, regardless of the direction that manufacturers & litigants take, many citizens will still have to deal with exposure to products & materials containing asbestos. Subsequently, health effects will continue to emerge as a result of exposure to asbestos & so a new history mesothelioma will be recorded. Unfortunately, the picture is grim for persons who are not aware of this particular issue. Our page on Cancer discusses how dehydration, even mild chronic dehydration & mesothelioma & other cancers are linked. Click here for more on the link between cancer & dehydration Our page on Contamination also discusses how water contamination could lead to mesothelioma & other cancers. Click here for more on water contamination - cancer link
Following are links to our pages on mesothelioma: Basic mesothelioma facts To go from history of mesothelioma 2 Home, click here
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