The Italian Experience in the Development of Mesothelioma Registries: A Pathway for Other Countries to Address the Negative Legacy of Asbestos

Corrado Magnani (), Carolina Mensi, Alessandra Binazzi, Daniela Marsili, Federica Grosso, Juan Pablo Ramos-Bonilla, Daniela Ferrante, Enrica Migliore, Dario Mirabelli, Benedetto Terracini, Dario Consonni, Daniela Degiovanni, Michela Lia, María Fernanda Cely-García, Margarita Giraldo, Benjamin Lysaniuk, Pietro Comba and Alessandro Marinaccio
Additional contact information
Corrado Magnani: Department of Translational Medicine, University of Eastern Piedmont, 28100 Novara, Italy
Carolina Mensi: Occupational Health Unit, Fondazione IRCCS Ca’ Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, 20122 Milan, Italy
Alessandra Binazzi: Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Epidemiology and Hygiene, Italian Workers’ Compensation Authority, 00143 Rome, Italy
Daniela Marsili: Department of Environment and Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, ISS (Italian National Institute of Health), 00161 Rome, Italy
Federica Grosso: Mesothelioma Unit, Azienda Ospedaliera SS Antonio e Biagio e Cesare Arrigo, 15121 Alessandria, Italy
Juan Pablo Ramos-Bonilla: Collegium Ramazzini, Bentivoglio, 40010 Modena, Italy
Daniela Ferrante: Department of Translational Medicine, University of Eastern Piedmont, 28100 Novara, Italy
Enrica Migliore: Unit of Cancer Epidemiology, Regional Operating Center of Piemonte (COR Piemonte), University of Torino and CPO-Piemonte, 10126 Torin, Italy
Dario Mirabelli: Unit of Cancer Epidemiology, Regional Operating Center of Piemonte (COR Piemonte), University of Torino and CPO-Piemonte, 10126 Torin, Italy
Benedetto Terracini: Collegium Ramazzini, Bentivoglio, 40010 Modena, Italy
Dario Consonni: Occupational Health Unit, Fondazione IRCCS Ca’ Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, 20122 Milan, Italy
Daniela Degiovanni: Palliative Care Vitas, 15033 Casale Monferrato, Italy
Michela Lia: Mesothelioma Unit, Azienda Ospedaliera SS Antonio e Biagio e Cesare Arrigo, 15121 Alessandria, Italy
María Fernanda Cely-García: Departamento de Ingeniería Civil y Ambiental, Universidad de Los Andes, Bogotá 111711, Colombia
Margarita Giraldo: Departamento de Ingeniería Civil y Ambiental, Universidad de Los Andes, Bogotá 111711, Colombia
Benjamin Lysaniuk: IRD (MàD by CNRS), UMR Prodig, 93222 Aubervilliers, France
Pietro Comba: Collegium Ramazzini, Bentivoglio, 40010 Modena, Italy
Alessandro Marinaccio: Collegium Ramazzini, Bentivoglio, 40010 Modena, Italy

IJERPH, 2023, vol. 20, issue 2, 1-24

Abstract: Asbestos (all forms, including chrysotile, crocidolite, amosite, tremolite, actinolite, and anthophyllite) is carcinogenic to humans and causally associated with mesothelioma and cancer of the lung, larynx, and ovary. It is one of the carcinogens most diffuse in the world, in workplaces, but also in the environment and is responsible for a very high global cancer burden. A large number of countries, mostly with high-income economies, has banned the use of asbestos which, however, is still widespread in low- and middle-income countries. It remains, thus, one of the most common occupational and environmental carcinogens worldwide. Italy issued an asbestos ban in 1992, following the dramatic observation of a large increase in mortality from mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases in exposed workers and also in subjects with non-occupational exposure. A mesothelioma registry was also organized and still monitors the occurrence of mesothelioma cases, conducting a case-by-case evaluation of asbestos exposure. In this report, we describe two Italian communities, Casale Monferrato and Broni, that faced an epidemic of mesothelioma resulting from the production of asbestos cement and the diffuse environmental exposure; we present the activity and results of the Italian mesothelioma registry (ReNaM), describe the risk-communication activities at the local and national level with a focus on international cooperation and also describe the interaction between mesothelioma registration and medical services specialized in mesothelioma diagnosis and treatment in an area at high risk of mesothelioma. Finally, we assess the potential application of the solutions and methods already developed in Italy in a city in Colombia with high mesothelioma incidence associated with the production of asbestos-cement materials and the presence of diffuse environmental asbestos pollution.

Keywords: mesothelioma; mesothelioma registry; asbestos (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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