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What is Mesothelioma and Causes

Mesothelioma is a tumor derived from mesothelial cells of the pleura, peritoneum, pericardium and tunica albuginea. The mesothelium is a membrane that covers all our cavities inside. Pleural is the most common location (80%), affecting the pleura diffusely. The pleura is the membrane that covers the rib cage and the surface of the lungs.


It is a rare tumor. It occurs between the 5th and 7th decade of life due to prior occupational exposure to asbestos or asbestos (a mineral) in youth. The incidence is highest in Australia, Belgium and Britain (with more than 20 cases per million inhabitants). The incidence is higher in men than in women.

The mean survival of those affected by malignant mesothelioma is between six and 18 months.

Causes of Mesothelioma

The trade-name asbestos mineral formed by silica, magnesium oxide ferroso- lime and is the leading cause of mesothelioma, having proven carcinogenic potential in animals.

In humans it has been shown that the risk is proportional to the exposure to it, with miners and workers in the shipbuilding industry, construction, textile and plumbers, higher risk groups.

In fact it is estimated that up to 10% of workers at risk developing mesothelioma, and 80% of mesothelioma cases have a history of exposure to this mineral, whose use in construction began to limit decades and has been banned in many developed countries (in Spain in 2001), but is still present in many of the buildings around us. Currently, there are several court cases and associations of victims claiming compensation for those affected by their use.

The latency period (time between exposure and onset of disease) can be between 14 and 75 years, and other factors that can influence are the exposure time, intensity and environmental exposure, and there are even cases of familial mesothelioma .

Other causes of mesothelioma are ionizing radiation (increased incidence in patients previously treated with radiation therapy) or SV40 virus present between 60 and 86% of samples of mesothelioma (although you can not draw conclusive results in studies).

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