By JESSICA SCHIEBER
Editor-in-Chief
Asbestos was used to add strength and resistance to heat, fire and corrosion in building materials like insulation, roofing, flooring and cement. This material was later deemed cancerous and if a place comes into contact with it they should seek immediate removal of it.
According to the National Cancer Institute asbestos is the name that is given to six minerals that occur naturally in the environment as bundles of fiber that can be separated into thin, durable threads for use in commercial and industrial applications.
Asbestos minerals are divided into two major groups: Serpentine asbestos and amphibole asbestos. Serpentine asbestos includes the mineral chrysotile, which has long, curly fibers that can be woven.
Amphibole asbestos includes the minerals actinolite, tremolite, anthophyllite, crocidolite and amosite. Amphibole asbestos has straight, needle-like fibers that are more brittle than those of serpentine asbestos and are more limited in their ability to be fabricated.
People may be exposed to asbestos in their workplace, their communities, or their homes. If products containing asbestos are disturbed, tiny asbestos fibers are released into the air.
When asbestos fibers are breathed in, they may get trapped in the lungs and remain there for a long time.
Over time these fibers can accumulate and cause scarring and inflammation that can affect breathing and lead to health problems.
Asbestos has been classified as a known human carcinogen, which is a substance that causes cancer, by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the International Agency for Research on Cancer.
Asbestos causes mesothelioma with treatment patients typically lives 12 or 21 months after diagnosis according to Dr. Daniel Landau with Asbestos.com. If a patient goes without treatment their life expectancy goes down to 6 or 8 months.
According to Mayo Clinic, some symptoms of pleural mesothelioma which affects the tissue around the lungs include chest pain, painful coughing, shortness of breath, lumps under the skin on the chest, tiredness and weight loss without trying.
Peritoneal mesothelioma affects tissue in the belly and symptoms of this could include belly pain, belly swelling, nausea, tiredness and weight loss without trying.
While there are other types of mesotheliomas not much is known about them. Pericardial mesothelioma affects tissue around the heart which may cause trouble breathing and chest pains.
To have asbestos removed you must hire a licensed professional. This limits risks of asbestos health issues to everyone.
Licensed professionals have to wear full body personal protective equipment while dealing with asbestos to ensure their own health and safety.
Asbestos institute claims that it can cost between $5- $15 the average being $8. For a typical 1,500-square-foot house the expected cost would be $7,500- $22,500 with an average of $1200.
For Northwestern, the asbestos project costed roughly $45,000.
