Asbestos Related Deaths Keep Rising In The US -- MesoLink.org -- 07-27-04

Further studies have shown that asbestos related deaths have risen dramatically over the past few decades. Even now, the number of cases continues to rise and it is throught that the number of cases won’t peak for a few years yet, but instead will simply continue to rise steadily.

A study performed by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention showed that in 1968 only 77 people died from an asbestos-related condition, but 32 years later this had gone up to nearly 1500 people. As more and more cases of mesothelioma come to light, this figure continues to rise, and it is likely to keep rising for the next couple of decades.

Although many new laws and regulations have been brought in to force all over Europe and the United States, the high number of cases stems from asbestos exposure from thirty or forty years ago, when there were no real protective measures for workers. It is these people that are now being diagnosed with mesothelioma, because this cancer can take several decades to manifest.

Over the past couple of decades many companies have been forced to pay out billions in compensation to those affected by mesothelioma, and some firms have been forced in to bankruptcy.