Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 9, 2025
Implantation and Monitoring by PET/CT of an Orthotopic Model of Human Pleural Mesothelioma in Athymic Mice
Published on: December 21, 2019
A postmortem case control study of asbestos burden in lungs of malignant mesothelioma cases
S D Visonà1, B Bertoglio2, C Favaron3
1Department of Public Health, Experimental and Forensic Medicine, Unit of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy. silviadamiana.visona@unipv.it.
Background:
Asbestos lung content is regarded as the most reliable tool for causal attribution of malignant mesothelioma (MM) to previous asbestos exposures. However, there is a lack of studies on asbestos burden in lungs of MM patients in comparison with healthy individuals. This study aims to provide such a comparison, investigating, as well, differences in asbestos lung burden with sex and time trends.
Methods:
Asbestos lung content has been assessed on formalin-fixed lung fragments using scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersion spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) on individuals deceased from MM (cases) and healthy subjects without any lung disease who died from violent causes (controls) between 2005 and 2023.
Results:
Asbestos and asbestos bodies (ABs) were found, respectively, in 73.7% and 43.2% of cases and in 28 and 22% of controls; in MM cases the most represented asbestos types were crocidolite and amosite, whereas in controls it was tremolite-actinolite asbestos. The concentration of both asbestos fibers and ABs was statistically significantly higher in MM cases compared to controls. The mean asbestos fibers width was also significantly higher in cases than controls. Males and females with MM showed similar asbestos and ABs concentrations, but females had higher concentrations of chrysotile, and significantly lower fibers width compared to males. Time trends show that MM lung asbestos concentrations decreased starting in 2011.
Discussion:
The results suggest a correlation between asbestos burden in lungs and MM risk. The different concentration of chrysotile, as well as the different width of asbestos fibers in MM males and females might reflect a sex difference in response of the lung microenvironment to inhaled asbestos. Finally, this study provides the first pathological evidence of the effect of the ban of asbestos use, demonstrating a significant decrease of asbestos lung content after 2011.
Insights
This study found significantly higher asbestos lung content in malignant mesothelioma (MM) patients compared to healthy individuals. Asbestos burden in lungs decreased after 2011, indicating the impact of asbestos bans.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Health
- Occupational Medicine
- Pathology
Background:
- Asbestos lung content is crucial for attributing malignant mesothelioma (MM) to asbestos exposure.
- Limited studies compare asbestos burden in MM patients versus healthy individuals.
- Investigating sex and time trends in asbestos lung burden is essential.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare asbestos lung burden between MM patients and healthy controls.
- To examine sex-based differences in asbestos lung burden.
- To analyze temporal trends in asbestos lung content.
Main Methods:
- Asbestos content analyzed in formalin-fixed lung tissue using SEM-EDS.
- Study included MM cases and healthy controls from 2005-2023.
- Quantified asbestos fibers and asbestos bodies (ABs).
Main Results:
- Asbestos and ABs were more prevalent and concentrated in MM cases than controls.
- MM cases showed higher asbestos fiber width.
- Females with MM had higher chrysotile concentrations and narrower fibers; lung asbestos decreased post-2011.
Conclusions:
- A correlation exists between lung asbestos burden and MM risk.
- Sex-specific differences in asbestos fiber characteristics suggest varied lung responses.
- The study provides pathological evidence of asbestos bans reducing lung asbestos content.
