Dentists at high risk of asbestos cancer
Dentists are often at a high risk of developing mesothelioma, the cancer caused by asbestos.
Reports have suggested that over exposure to asbestos, which has been used in dentistry in things like casting rings for more than 80 years, makes dentists more likely to be develop mesothelioma.
Continued exposure to asbestos fibres in confined examination rooms can mean that dentists inhale a greater amount of the harmful substance unless they take precautions against it.
Mesothelioma is the result of inhaled asbestos becoming lodged in the soft tissue of the lungs.
The fibres damage the tissue’s DNA because they begin to replicate and divide. This cannot be controlled and tumours are then created.
The tumour can be relatively symptomless and in some cases it can take 20 to 50 years for any sort of symptom to develop.
In most cases these tumours are inoperable and a relatively unresponsive to chemo or radiation therapies.
Doctors are now urging dentists to have regular check-ups and to protect themselves against asbestos in their offices.
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