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Study: Increased mesothelioma risk for 1940s carpenters
13/03/09
A new study has found that one in 17 British carpenters born in the 1940s will die of the asbestos-related lung cancer mesothelioma.The research, published in the British Journal of Cancer, was funded by Cancer Research UK and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).
It was found that carpenters born in the 1940s who worked for more than a decade before they hit the age of 30 have a lifetime risk for mesothelioma of approximately one in 17.
Using the same criterion, plumbers, electricians and decorators have a risk of one in 50, while for other construction workers it is one in 125.
Lead researcher professor Julian Peto, said: "The UK has the highest death rate from mesothelioma in the world. The risk is highest in people who were exposed to asbestos before age 30".
Last year, a DIY enthusiast was forced to leave his home and destroy everything after he contaminated his flat with the toxic material by shaving a few centimetres off a door - which goes to show that some things are best left to the professionals.
