March 9th, 2007

Officials and doctors are concerned about the level of asbestos related cancer that is coming to light in Canada. This is thought to be the result of secondary exposure, where sons and daughters may have been exposed to asbestos dust and fibers from the skin and clothing of their fathers or mothers over the years.

Doctors have stated that these cancers may have been triggered by this secondary exposure to asbestos, which is a known carcinogenic that can result in a form of cancer known as mesothelioma, and was once widely used in many industries and many applications. This form of cancer can take several decades to manifest from the time of exposure, and those exposed as kids to the dust on their fathers’ clothing, for instance, may not realize the implications for forty or fifty years.

One forty-nine year-old diagnosed with mesothelioma stated that his father worked with asbestos for thirty years. His father died from the asbestos related cancer, and following that his sister and his brother also died. He said: 'They figure it was on his clothes. The dust was on his clothes, it would be in the car.'

One medic, Dr. Abe Reinhartz, said: 'If anyone in your family worked with asbestos in the 1950s to early 1980s it would be worthwhile being checked out by a health care provider, especially if there are respiratory symptoms.'