Exposure to asbestos, even in very small quantities, can cause mesothelioma or asbestosis. The most common form of mesothelioma is pleural mesothelioma, which accounts for seventy to eighty percent of all mesothelioma diagnoses. While a rare disorder in the general population, mesothelioma is not rare among individuals exposed to asbestos. There are two to three thousand new diagnoses of mesothelioma every year.
Most mesothelioma victims were exposed to asbestos in the workplace and were never aware of its dangers (Occupational Hazards - Shipbuilding and Asbestos). Unlike many other predominantly pulmonary-related cancers, cigarette smoking has no known causative affect on mesothelioma incidence.
One of the most difficult aspects of mesothelioma to come to terms with is its long latency period, which is the period of time between first exposure to asbestos and the diagnosis of the disease. Mesothelioma typically develops 10 to 70 years after the initial exposure.
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