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Asbestos

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  • First Online:
Encyclopedia of Cancer

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Definition

Asbestos is a commercial term for a group of crystalline silicates that are composed of long thin fibers. Formerly, the noncombustible mineral was incorporated into a great variety of industrial and building materials. However, asbestos can be easily broken into tiny microscopic fibers and inhaled. In the lungs, the indestructible fibers may, over time, increase in size due to acquisition of ferritin/hemosiderin from proximal dying macrophages. After many years, the inhaled fibers can be carcinogenic. Thus commercial use of asbestos has been banned.

Characteristics

Carcinogenic Action of Iron

During the past 80 years, authors of scores of clinical and laboratory studies have reported that one of the many dangers of excessive/misplaced iron is its ability to initiate and to promote neoplastic cell growth. Initiation occurs via iron-catalyzed formation of reactive oxygen radicals (reactive oxygen species; oxidative stress) that, when generated in close proximity to DNA, can...

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References

  • Hardy JA, Aust AE (1995) Iron in asbestos chemistry and carcinogenesis. Chem Rev 95:97–118

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  • Weinberg ED (1996) The role of iron in cancer. Eur J Cancer Prev 5:19–36

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  • Weinberg ED (1999) The development of awareness of the carcinogenic hazard of inhaled iron. Oncol Res 11:109–113

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See Also

  • (2012) Crocidolite. In: Schwab M (ed) Encyclopedia of cancer, 3rd edn. Springer, Berlin/Heidelberg, p 998. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-16483-5_1378

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  • (2012) Chrysotile. In: Schwab M (ed) Encyclopedia of cancer, 3rd edn. Springer, Berlin/Heidelberg, p 856. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-16483-5_1163

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  • (2012) Erionite. In: Schwab M (ed) Encyclopedia of cancer, 3rd edn. Springer, Berlin/Heidelberg, p 1307. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-16483-5_1986

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  • (2012) Ferritin. In: Schwab M (ed) Encyclopedia of cancer, 3rd edn. Springer, Berlin/Heidelberg, p 1391. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-16483-5_2148

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  • (2012) Ferruginous bodies. In: Schwab M (ed) Encyclopedia of cancer, 3rd edn. Springer, Berlin/Heidelberg, p 1391. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-16483-5_2149

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  • (2012) Smoking. In: Schwab M (ed) Encyclopedia of cancer, 3rd edn. Springer, Berlin/Heidelberg, p 3455. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-16483-5_5382

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  • (2012) Tremolite. In: Schwab M (ed) Encyclopedia of cancer, 3rd edn. Springer, Berlin/Heidelberg, p 3782. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-16483-5_5968

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  • (2012) Zeolite. In: Schwab M (ed) Encyclopedia of cancer, 3rd edn. Springer, Berlin/Heidelberg, p 3975. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-16483-5_6297

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Biology and Medical Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA

    Eugene D. Weinberg

Authors
  1. Eugene D. Weinberg
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Correspondence to Eugene D. Weinberg .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Abt. Tumorgenetik, Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, Heidelberg, Germany

    Manfred Schwab

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Weinberg, E.D. (2014). Asbestos. In: Schwab, M. (eds) Encyclopedia of Cancer. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27841-9_409-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27841-9_409-2

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-27841-9

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Biomedicine and Life SciencesReference Module Biomedical and Life Sciences

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