Analysis of the Indian Government’s position on the use of asbestos and its health effects

Singh, Raja; Frank, Arthur L.

doi:10.5588/pha.23.0013

Cited by 4 publications

References 2 publications

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The Status of Indian Cancer Record Keeping and Study of Mesothelioma Cases to Ascertain Asbestos Exposure in India

Singh,

Frank

2023

Preprint

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SettingAsbestos exposure causes mesothelioma which is classified as a malignancy and recorded by cancer registries which currently covers only16% of the population in India. The accurate number of mesothelioma cases may not be available for decision making as India still uses asbestos and it is important to ascertain its health impact, especially mesothelioma.ObjectiveThis study aims to find the cases of mesothelioma from 83 hospitals across India from 2012 onwards till 2022-2023. The study also compares the national registry reported cases to the ones found in this study.DesignThe study uses the Right to Information Act 2005 to find data from various hospitals and reporting the same. The data from the voluntary national registry was also collected. This was compiled and compared.ResultsOverall, the study shows 2213 cases of mesothelioma 2012 onwards in India from 83 hospitals. In the comparison period of 2012-2016, the registry reported cases were 54, while the study shows 1126 cases. Only 21% of hospitals in this study were part of the national registry programme.ConclusionMesothelioma cases in India are more frequent than reported and the current recordkeeping for all cancers does not fully cover the expanse of India and needs to be revamped.

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The Status of Indian Cancer Record Keeping and Study of Mesothelioma Cases to Ascertain Asbestos Exposure in India

Singh,

Frank

2023

Preprint

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Asbestos as contaminant in the mining of non-asbestos minerals: Case of a “marble” waste slurry dump-yard from Rajasthan, India

Singh,

Fitzgerald,

Dada

et al. 2024

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Asbestos is fibrous minerals, some of which can naturally occur in certain types of marble, including asbestiform tremolite, actinolite, anthophyllite, and chrysotile, with tremolite the most common among those associated asbestos types. This is of concern as miners and stone workers may not be aware of this and may never be considered by physicians treating them for lung related ailments. Wet marble dust in slurry form is disposed of at designated waste collection points, including in Rajsamand, Rajasthan. unfortunately, this location is now open to the public as a tourist attraction. Dust from this location was tested using Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) and tremolite asbestos fibres were found. The presence of tremolite means the workers, bystanders and tourists to the waste collection spots may be exposed to this carcinogen and this may become the etiological factor for mesothelioma or lung cancer among other asbestos related diseases. The marble industry in general should also be subjected to the same regulations as the asbestos industry due to the presence of naturally occurring asbestos in such mines. This is particularly germane in India where asbestos is widely being used and studies show a significant and increasing number of asbestos related lung and pleural, malignant and non-malignant diseases including cancers, such as mesothelioma. This study aims to highlight the occupational and environmental health hazard among workers and the general public.

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Malignant pleural mesothelioma: The disdained member of thoracic oncology!

Khosla,

Singh,

Chhabria

et al. 2024

World J Exp Med

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Pleural mesothelioma is a very aggressive malignancy that arises from the pleural mesothelial cell lining and is linked strongly to prior asbestos exposure. The ban on asbestos has helped to lower the incidence, but in developing countries like India, it is expected to rise. It has an extended latency period usually progressing over decades and presents with nonspecific symptoms. It has a median survival ranging between 10-22 months. The diagnosis of malignant pleural mesothelioma is challenging and is done using computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging, or positron emission tomography-CT, with the last two predicting the resectability of the tumor better than CT alone. A pleural biopsy along with an array of immunohistochemical markers, such as p16, BRCA1 associated protein 1, and claudin-4, are required for a definitive diagnosis. Several genetic alterations have prognostic significance as well. The current histological subtype identification is indispensable for decision making because of the new therapeutic avenues being explored. The combination of nivolumab and ipilimumab-based immunotherapy outperformed platinum and pemetrexed-based chemotherapy in terms of survival benefit and improved quality of life especially for non-epithelioid subtypes. However, the latter continues to be a robust treatment option for patients with the epithelioid subtype. Surgery is recommended for resectable cases with radiotherapy being indicated in neoadjuvant, adjuvant, and palliative settings along with systemic treatment. This review article provides an overview of epidemiology, etiology, clinical manifestations, diagnostic approaches (including immunohistochemical and genetic markers), staging, and multidisciplinary approaches to current treatment for malignant pleural mesothelioma using surgery, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and radiotherapy. It also sheds light on some recent studies (EMPHACIS, CALGB30901, Checkmate-743, etc ) that have led to significant developments in recent years with clinically meaningful results.

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Analysis of the Indian Government’s position on the use of asbestos and its health effects

Cited by 4 publications

References 2 publications

The Status of Indian Cancer Record Keeping and Study of Mesothelioma Cases to Ascertain Asbestos Exposure in India

The Status of Indian Cancer Record Keeping and Study of Mesothelioma Cases to Ascertain Asbestos Exposure in India

Asbestos as contaminant in the mining of non-asbestos minerals: Case of a “marble” waste slurry dump-yard from Rajasthan, India

Malignant pleural mesothelioma: The disdained member of thoracic oncology!

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