Our Boston mesothelioma lawyers know it has long been believed that asbestos exposure was the only known cause of mesothelioma.
However, so far the only people believed to have contracted mesothelioma in connection with taconite exposure are men who worked in the taconite industry.
Taconite is a low-grade iron ore that is mainly comprised of chert. In its natural element, it is primarily found near Lake Superior.
A connection between taconite mining work and mesothelioma was first realized back in the late 1990s. As such, the Minnesota Legislator commissioned the $4.9 million study back in 2008, noting the state's cancer registry revealed that there were a huge spike in mesothelioma cases among Minnesota Iron Range workers.
Back in 2003, the University of Minnesota conducted a study of taconite miners, and discovered that at least 14 to 17 cases of mesothelioma among those individuals were most likely caused by asbestos exposure. However, since that time, another 35 cases of mesothelioma have been diagnosed among taconite miners, and that was what prompted this study.
The results show that for every year a taconite laborer worked in the mine, his risk of mesothelioma inched up by 3 percent. But these workers might also have been exposed to a fair amount of asbestos in this work as well.
"Researchers can not say with assuredness that dust from taconite operations causes mesothelioma," a local report indicated. Ongoing research will be necessary, they said, to determine what role asbestos played in the cases analyzed.
Researchers further pointed out that the taconite industry may be safer today than it was years ago. Occupational exposure to various forms of dust are considered to be within safe limits, and spouse-related contraction of dust-related lung ailments were no higher for taconite workers than they were for the population at large. That is a major difference from what we see in the asbestos industry, where spouses of workers exposed to asbestos have much higher rates of mesothelioma than the general population.
However, so far the only people believed to have contracted mesothelioma in connection with taconite exposure are men who worked in the taconite industry.
Taconite is a low-grade iron ore that is mainly comprised of chert. In its natural element, it is primarily found near Lake Superior.
A connection between taconite mining work and mesothelioma was first realized back in the late 1990s. As such, the Minnesota Legislator commissioned the $4.9 million study back in 2008, noting the state's cancer registry revealed that there were a huge spike in mesothelioma cases among Minnesota Iron Range workers.
Back in 2003, the University of Minnesota conducted a study of taconite miners, and discovered that at least 14 to 17 cases of mesothelioma among those individuals were most likely caused by asbestos exposure. However, since that time, another 35 cases of mesothelioma have been diagnosed among taconite miners, and that was what prompted this study.
The results show that for every year a taconite laborer worked in the mine, his risk of mesothelioma inched up by 3 percent. But these workers might also have been exposed to a fair amount of asbestos in this work as well.
"Researchers can not say with assuredness that dust from taconite operations causes mesothelioma," a local report indicated. Ongoing research will be necessary, they said, to determine what role asbestos played in the cases analyzed.
Researchers further pointed out that the taconite industry may be safer today than it was years ago. Occupational exposure to various forms of dust are considered to be within safe limits, and spouse-related contraction of dust-related lung ailments were no higher for taconite workers than they were for the population at large. That is a major difference from what we see in the asbestos industry, where spouses of workers exposed to asbestos have much higher rates of mesothelioma than the general population.
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