Mesothelioma Cancer: A Man’s Disease, Or A Woman’s Worst Nightmare?
The prospect of developing mesothelioma can be one of the farthest things from a woman’s mind. Women today are busier than ever and are now more than ever challenging traditional gender lines both professionally and domestically. However, with these changes in our society over the past century, women must now be aware of certain dangers that they may now be potentially exposed to.
Among the myths that people seem to assume about mesothelioma, is that it is a disease that only affects men. While the overwhelming majority of mesothelioma instances arise in males, women are neither immune nor unsusceptible to this rare form of cancer. The foundations of these myths are typically within the nature of the causal relationship between asbestos exposure and the development of the disease in those exposed.
Because most asbestos exposures are industrial in nature, instances of occupational exposure among women had been largely unknown because of the female gender’s absence from this type of occupational environment. However, as women slowly entered these environments, their risk of developing diseases traditionally restricted to males become a real danger.
There are essentially two ways in which women are exposed to the asbestos fibers that precede the development of mesothelioma. The first way in which women may be exposed is through direct workplace exposures, which is also how the majority of men are exposed. When women stepped into the industrial world at the onset of WWII, they were embarking into a largely unfamiliar sector for the female gender. Unfortunately, women became exposed to the same dangers that men faced in these settings prior to the war, including exposure to industrial toxins. Among the more common carcinogens found industry at this time was asbestos. Before the dangers of asbestos became clear in the latter half of the twentieth century, it was commonly used in an insulation capacity on ships, railroads, and aircraft. Because these industries were so crucial to the war effort, exposures during this time were common and included women. While industrial exposures during this time were the most common, they are not limited to war boom construction. In fact, occupational exposures occurred up until asbestos was banned in the late seventies.
The other way in which women have been exposed is through a secondary encounter with the asbestos fibers. Often, men returning from factories had their work clothing washed by their wives or children. Sustained encounters with clothing covered in asbestos dust have led to the development of mesothelioma, particularly among women and children who handled the clothing. Exposures were not limited to just laundering however, and any way in which the asbestos was brought into the home by the laborer, left women and children at risk.
Luckily however, we know a great deal more about the disease then we did when cases were first diagnosed. Today there are preventative measures that can be taken by women and men to curb the likelihood of asbestos exposures. Mesothelioma treatment and financial assistance are now available to those who may have been affected, thus making a difficult battle with cancer a little easier for the patient and family. While there is no cure for mesothelioma, physicians and cancer specialists are working tirelessly for reach the point where we can finally eliminate this unfortunate disease.
Written by John Blume of the Mesothelioma and Asbestos Awareness Center. Read more about women and mesothelioma.
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