Asbestos Lung Cancer

An individual can develop asbestos lung cancer after inhaling asbestos fibers. Once the fibers are inhaled, they can become lodged in the lung tissue, where they may cause cancer.

Experts have estimated that 18% of lung cancers may be caused by exposure to asbestos. In the United States, an estimated 2,000-3,200 people die from asbestos lung cancer yearly. Once an individual has inhaled asbestos, there is a latency period between exposure and onset of lung cancer, but others have been as little as three years or as long as thirty. Some latency periods have been ten and half years between exposure and development. There are two types of lung cancer caused by asbestos. The first is called small cell lung cancer, and the second is non-small cell lung cancer. The majority of all lung cancers are non-small cell lung cancer.