Remodeling Yourself? Leave Asbestos to the Professionals
By
When remodeling your home yourself, it is important to take certain precautions. Demolition and remodeling often make asbestos a prevalent danger in American households. Asbestos is a naturally-occurring mineral that is a known carcinogen. This fiber consists of long, thin fibrous crystals and may be mixed with other substances in order to resist heat, electricity and chemical damage. Due to these characteristics, asbestos was used in many buildings and other structures throughout the 1900s. One estimation is that up to 80 percent of all buildings constructed before 1978 had asbestos within the design.
Knowing whether or not asbestos is in your home takes a licensed professional, because it is difficult to determine conclusively whether or not a building material contains asbestos merely by looking at it. If you believe that your house contains asbestos, the Air Pollution Control District (APCD) recommends using a licensed asbestos removal contractor who knows the correct safe procedure of ridding the toxin from your home. Not only is removing asbestos yourself a daunting task, but also extremely dangerous. There are very strict procedures that need to be followed in order to not damage the asbestos, and only trained professionals are qualified to handle these procedures.
Asbestos is typically found in insulation, ceilings, and walls. There is no safe level of exposure, and it is highly dangerous when it is disturbed. Damage to asbestos releases the fibers into the air and once inhaled, it can become lodged in the linings of organs–such as the heart, lungs, and abdomen. This may lead to various asbestos-related diseases such as asbestosis, mesothelioma, and other forms of asbestos cancer.
Mesothelioma (mez-uh-thee-lee-O-muh) is a type of cancer that can be either malignant or benign. Malignant mesothelioma is the most hazardous form of this cancer and in most cases will lead to death. This cancer affects the mesothelium, which protects the heart, stomach, lungs, and other organs by making a special fluid that allows the organs to move. Due to the latency period–which can be 20 to 50 years–it is difficult to diagnose and treat.
The risk of lung cancer and mesothelioma increases with the number of fibers inhaled. The risk of lung cancer from inhaling asbestos fibers is also greater if you smoke.
If you believe that your home contains asbestos that has been disturbed, do not sweep, dust, or vacuum the debris. Immediately contact a professional to clean it up. Additionally, you should see your doctor as soon as possible. Asbestos cancer treatments are more effective and symptoms are more identifiable if your doctor is aware that you have been exposed to asbestos.
Watch the video related
www.mesotheliomaandasbestoscancer.com Many people have never heard of Mesothelioma and are unaware of its symptoms. Although considered a rare form of cancer, each year the number of cases grows. With the prevalence of this disease on the rise, it is critical to understand why and how Mesothelioma develops and what courses of action can be taken in the event of diagnosis. The following are some questions and answers that will provide you with information on Mesothelioma….
Help answer the question
My grandpa has altsimas and asbestos cancer. Should I be worrying? Is he going to live much longer?
He is 64 and he has had back pains. He's been in hosptial for his altsimas and his back. PLEASE don't give me "god will take care of him" it doesnt help!
asbestos cancer
9 Comments
September 15th, 2009 at 5:16 pm
Try the links in http://www.hot8sites.com/lawyer/mesothelioma-lawyers-helping-the-mesothelioma-v.html
September 15th, 2009 at 5:32 pm
The ONLY treatment I've ever seen work (and work often!) is the Immuno Augmentive Therapy (IAT) Clinic in Freeport Grand Bahamas. They are run by British and Bahamian medical doctors, and are in my opinion by far the best alternative cancer treatment center in the world.
For some reason, their treatment (small injections you take several times a day containing immune system proteins) works especially well with mesothelioma, and they are well known for treating it, and often get referrels from Stateside and British MD.s.
Visit their website at either…
September 16th, 2009 at 10:55 pm
Anything that is in the public that causes cancer should be taken care of.
And people who smoke have the choice. People who are in buildings and are not aware that they are containing asbestos do not really have the choice to stay away from it.
September 17th, 2009 at 8:15 am
A rather unknown quantity, which varies with lifestyle.
As much as one exposure to blue asbestos could cause illness.
Some builders have worked with ordinary asbestos all their lives and have no signs of illness yet. Others are already dead.
September 17th, 2009 at 2:57 pm
Try to search for Cyberknife and Trilogy.
Cyberknife Robotic Stereotactic Radiosurgery System is an advanced, noninvasive alternative for treating benign and malignant lesions anywhere in the body.
Trilogy is an External beam radiation therapy comes from a machine that aims radiation at your cancer. The machine does not touch you, but rotates around you, sending radiation to your body from many directions. This is a local treatment, meaning that the radiation is aimed only at a specific part of your body.
September 18th, 2009 at 1:15 am
Mesothelioma is the cancer caused by asbestos.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mesothelioma
September 18th, 2009 at 3:09 am
The carcinogenic nature of asbestos (chrysotile) has been related to the shape of the particles more than their composition. In other words, the substance itself is not carcinogenic – the shape is!
Chrysotile produces very thin fibers that can be many times longer than they are wide. When these become embedded in the lungs, larger particles can be coughed out but smaller particles need to be carried out by a type of white blood cell called a macrophage. Unfortunately, small asbestos fibers tend to be so long relative to their width that they tend to be actually longer than the macrophages. When the macrophages try to engulf them, the cells puncture and the macrophages die before they can do their job.
The EPA has targeted asbestos fibers over 8 micrometers in length as being the bad actors in causing mesothelioma (asbestos-related cancer), and claims that particles shorter than about 4 micrometers are not harmful (although this point is still being argued). Theoretically, the macrophages can successfully engulf shorter particles and get rid of them.
So why the cancer? There have been various theories about the mechanism. One theory is that the constant release of biochemical "distress signals" given off by the dying macrophages are the actual cause of the cancer. Another theory is that the asbestos particles have active surface sites for the generation of free radicals from oxygen, and that the free radicals are capable of reacting with and damaging the surrounding cells.
It's an interesting story. The link below has everything that you need (it is basically a list of resource papers and articles) although you will have to do some work to sift through the material.
The summary I wrote here is just from memory. When I was in university many moons ago this was one of the hot research topics in our department, so I got to see a lot of presentations on the subject although it was not an area in which I was personally working.
Good luck on the project
September 18th, 2009 at 6:43 pm
Shortness of breath is the main first symptom. Fatigue, weight loss, and a dry cough are also symptoms. My mom died from mesothelioma in 2006.
September 19th, 2009 at 1:01 am
When you say "altsimas"-do you mean alzhiemer's disease?I think you do. These are questions that the medical profession are asked all the time by relatives and patients…It is almost impossible to be able to tell you,with any certainty, how much longer your grandfather will live. Its just so hard-even for the most experienced nurse or doctor. A good indication of how much longer he will live would be when the doctor's take him off his meds-as a nurse that is always a good indicator. Of course if we could assess him, we might have a better idea. Is he in hospital full time? Are they telling you that he is palliative? Alzhiemer's does not always indicate that he will pass soon-he may live for years with just the alzhiemers alone, but combine that with asbestosis/cancer and it does not indicate a good outcome. I'm very sorry but the best information I can give you would be to ask his doctor privately to explain exactly your grandfather's condition to you.If you don't understand the explanation, tell the doctor that you don't understand.