Why is asbestos still being found in the work place in the UK?
We have made improvements since asbestos was heavily used in the building industry and shipyards.
Thanks to research regulations are now in place to prevent workers from exposure to this deadly substance.
Unfortunately Mesothelioma, a type of cancer caused by asbestos exposure, is still very much a reality today.
It’s not just the workers themselves, who have been exposed to asbestos, but also sadly their family members such as spouses and children who have been exposed to asbestos when it was brought home on work wear. Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral that’s mined and processed into a useable product ideal to insulate products.These fine fibres are inhaled into the lungs causing asbestos illnesses such as asbestosis, pleural thickening, mesothelioma and lung cancer.
Regulations were introduced in the 1960s to protect workers in asbestos factories, where the mineral was processed. The so-called ‘safe’ levels were based on a study in 1966 by the British Occupational Hygiene Society (BOHS).Asbestos continued to be used heavily in industry until well into the 1970s, with little recognition of its dangers. Further research, led to stricter industrial regulations, and in 1985 the importation and use of blue and brown asbestos were banned.
Unfortunately, there are many families in the U.K. and a high percentage of these are in the NE who have had experience of asbestos related deaths. Fathers, grandparents, husbands and wives all of whom have been exposed to asbestos while working in ship yards, the construction industry, factories or even public sector and office workers who have been exposed to asbestos while their place of work was being renovated.
Mesothelioma is a disease that can take over 40 years to develop leaving behind a long and painful legacy of asbestos use which is still being felt today.
0ver 2000 people are diagnosed with mesothelioma every year – around seven every day. That figure is set to peak around 2020.
Mesothelioma Research data published in 2014 provides the following statistics for Mesothelioma in the U.K.
The Northern Region of the UK has the 6th highest incident rate of Mesothelioma nationwide
1/3rd of patients in the North East receive anti cancer treatment.
2200 new diagnosis made of Mesothelioma a year in U.K.
2500 deaths a year
60,000 people are expected to die in U.K. in next 30 years
