Asbestos exposure can be blamed for causing nearly all of the approximately 3,000 cases of mesothelioma diagnosed every year. Most of that exposure occurred in the workplace.

Employees exposed and put at risk of asbestos-related diseases never knew about the dangers until it was too late. While not all workers exposed to asbestos later got sick, many ended up with life-threatening conditions.

Many companies used asbestos heavily until the government began regulating it in the 1970s. Workers who were more likely to be exposed include industrial workers, sailors and shipyard workers, construction laborers and skilled tradesmen, and miners, among many others.

Exposure to asbestos is now declining and occurs much less often than it did in the past. But not all the damage has yet been seen. People are still getting diagnosed with mesothelioma now because of the cancer's long latency period. Decades can pass between exposure and symptoms that lead to a diagnosis.

Researchers have made great improvements in diagnosing and treating mesothelioma. They are helping people live longer, but mesothelioma is still an aggressive and deadly type of cancer. There is no cure for mesothelioma and remission is extremely rare.

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Mesothelioma | Symptoms, Causes, and Prognosis Explained