Asbestos Related Lung Cancer (bronchial carcinoma, adenocarcinoma)

While much of the focus on cancers caused by asbestos is on mesothelioma (a cancer of the lining of the lung, heart, or abdomen), other thoracic carcinomas, such as adenocarcinoma, are also caused by exposure to asbestos. Asbestos is estimated to account for 3,400 to 8,500 new lung cancer cases in the United States each year.

Like mesothelioma, the latency period between asbestos exposure and the development of asbestos related lung cancer may be two, three, four, or even more decades. Very often, asbestos-related cancer victims also suffer from asbestosis, a scarring of the lung tissue caused by asbestos exposure. About one in seven people with asbestosis will eventually develop lung cancer.

A number of studies have attempted to determine whether asbestosis is present in all cases of asbestos-related lung cancer. While this would simplify the pathology determination once a lung cancer diagnosis was made—and potentially aid in treatment decisions—this has not proved to be a reliable pattern in asbestos related lung cancer cases.

Obviously the most common cause of lung cancer is tobacco use. As compared with tobacco, the number of lung cancer cases caused by asbestos is relatively small, with smoking accounting for 90% of all lung cancer cases and asbestos only 2 to 5%. The combination of the two, however, is a deadly mix, greatly increasing a person's risk of developing lung cancer, which the following chart reveals.

The National Cancer Institute strongly encourages asbestos-exposed workers who smoke to quit. Just as with their non-exposed counterparts, the risk of lung cancer drops dramatically after they cease tobacco use. Some studies have suggested the risk to asbestos-exposed smokers dropped as much as 50% within five years of kicking the habit.

• What is mesothelioma lung cancer?