| The Asbestos Cancer Epidemic Joseph LaDou Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, University of California School of Medicine, San Francisco, California, USA Abstract
The asbestos cancer epidemic may take as many as 10 million lives before asbestos is banned worldwide and exposures are brought to an end. In many developed countries, in the most affected age groups, mesothelioma may account for 1% of all deaths. In addition to mesotheliomas, 5-7% of all lung cancers can be attributed to occupational exposures to asbestos. The asbestos cancer epidemic would have been largely preventable if the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Labor Organization (ILO) had responded early and responsibly. The WHO was late in recognizing the epidemic and failed to act decisively after it was well under way. The WHO and the ILO continue to fail to address the problem of asbestos mining, manufacturing, and use and world trade of a known human carcinogen. Part of the problem is that the WHO and the ILO have allowed organizations such as the International Commission on Occupational Health (ICOH) and other asbestos industry advocates to manipulate them and to distort scientific evidence. The global asbestos cancer epidemic is a story of monumental failure to protect the public health. Key words: amosite, asbestos, asbestos cancer epidemic, chrysotile, crocidolite, ICOH, ILO, international occupational health, lung cancer, mesothelioma, WHO. Environ Health Perspect 112:285-290 (2004) . doi:10.1289/ehp.6704 available via http://dx.doi.org/ [Online 24 November 2003]
Address correspondence to J. LaDou, Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, University of California School of Medicine, 350 Parnassus Avenue, Suite 609, San Francisco, CA 94117 USA. Telephone: (415) 476-4951. Fax: (415) 476-6426. E-mail: joeladou@aol.com The author declares he has no competing financial interests. Received 26 August 2003 ; accepted 24 November 2003.
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