1. Common Asbestos Related Diseases
Workers engaged in renovation and rebuilding construction work are at risk of inhaling,
ingesting or absorbing deadly asbestos fibres which although toxic to the human body, were
used in the past to make building materials more durable. For this reason when you embark on
renovation work, you may disturb these fibres which may as a result affect your health.
The most common diseases caused by asbestos exposure are Mesothelioma, Pleural disease
and asbestosis. Australia shockingly has some of the highest numbers of these diseases in the
world. The reason these diseases are so deadly is because they are only discovered years after
exposure, when the person’s health is too far gone to fix, although no cures exist at the
moment anyway.
Mesothelioma is the cancer of the pleura and may only occur 20 to 40 years after the exposure
occurs. This disease grows and spreads quickly before the symptoms appear which makes
early diagnosis and treatments harder. The average survival time after diagnosis is only 6-18
months and takes only a very small amount of exposure to trigger.
Pleural disease is another dreaded disease associated with asbestos caused when the outer
lining of the lung, known as the plura becomes irritated and inflamed. This outer lining then
stiffens and thickens and can become filled with liquid, which can hamper normal breathing and
restrict oxygen intake eventually leading to death.
Asbestosis is when lungs become scarred causing airways to become inflamed and scarred,
restricting the flow of oxygen to the lungs and into the blood. The lungs become stiff and
inelastic, making breathing more difficult. Symptoms include tightness in the chest, dry cough,
and in the later stages, a bluish tinge to the skin caused by lack of oxygen.
Construction White Card Australia
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