[Epidemiological features of bronchial carcinoma cases with environmental asbestos exposure]

Due to environmental asbestos exposure, asbestos related lung diseases are common in Eskisehir district of Anatolia. In this study we aimed both to determine the epidemiological findings of the patients diagnosed as bronchial carcinoma and to discuss the features, which were probably related to asbestos exposure, presented by the patients. From May 1997 to December 2000, 301 cases were included in the study. Of the patients, 97 (32.2%) had epidermoid cell type, 84 (27.9%) had small cell, 39 (13%) had adenocarcinoma, 4 (1.3%) had large cell. Adenocarcinomas were more frequent in women. There were not significant differences among the cell types from the point of view of the age distributions. Adenocarcinomas were more frequently located in lower lobes of the lungs (36.9%) and more frequently showed peripheral locations (45.9%) than other cell types (20.6% for epidermoid and 14.6% for small cell). Pleural effusion was more detected in adenocarcinomas (48.7% to 17.3% in epidermoid, 18.3% in small cell). The duration of smoking was shortest in adenocarcinomas, mean 32.4 years; the same duration was 56.2 years for epidermoid carcinomas. Of the patients, 54% had asbestos exposure. Adenocarcinomas were more frequently detected in the patients who exposed to asbestos but did not smoke. Our findings support that asbestos exposure may increase adenocancer frequency. The epidemiological and clinical features of adenocancer cases exposed to asbestos environmentally were not different than those of adenocancer cases exposed to asbestos occupationally.