Pleural
Pleural
Types of asbestos
Chrysotile
· “white”
· curled serpentine fibres
· cleared from lungs by lymphatics
· not thought to cause mesothelioma
· may have a role in causing bronchogenic carcinoma
Amphibole
· Rod-like
· not cleared by lymphatics
· accumulate in macrophages
· associated with mesothelioma
Subtypes of amphibole asbestos
· Crocidolite “blue” - particularly carcinogenic
· Amosite - “brown” asbestos
· Anthrophylite - mines with pure anthrophylite have a low reported incidence mesothelioma
· Actinolite
· Tremolite - has been implicated in an epidemic of mesothelioma in northwest Greece where it was used for whitewashing