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Asbestos exposure is associated with many adverse health conditions including malignant mesothelioma and lung cancer as well as production of autoantibodies. Autoantibodies may serve as biomarkers for asbestos exposure in patients with cancer, and autoimmune dysfunction has been linked to increased rates of various cancers. The aim of this study was to examine the hypothesis that autoantibodies are more frequent in asbestos-exposed individuals with either lung cancer or mesothelioma than those without these conditions. Asbestos-exposed individuals from Western Australia who had lung cancer (n = 24), malignant mesothelioma (n = 24), or no malignancy (n = 51) were tested for antinuclear autoantibodies (ANA) using indirect immunofluorescence and specific extractable nuclear autoantibodies (ENA) employing a multiplexed addressable laser bead immunoassay. Contrary to the hypothesis, data demonstrated that individuals without malignancy were more likely to be positive for ANA compared to those with cancer. However, autoantibodies to histone and Ro-60 were found to be associated with lung cancer. These results support a possible predictive value for specific autoantibodies in the early detection of lung cancer and/or in our understanding of the role of autoimmune processes in cancer. However, further studies are needed to identify specific target antigens for the antibodies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Australia has maintained a national malignant mesothelioma register since 1980. The register includes all cases in Australia. Currently 450-600 cases are notified annually in a population of 20 million. Australia has had 6329 cases of mesothelioma in the period 1 January 1945-31 December 2000. A further 680 cases have been notified in the period 1 January 2001-31 December 2001. Annual incidence rates for Australia per million population ≥20 yr (1998) were male, 59.8; female, 10.9; total, 35.4. Incidence rates have been continually increasing in males and females and are the highest reported national rates in the world. While Western Australia has the highest rate (1998, 52.8), most cases arise from the two most populous eastern states, New South Wales and Victoria. In 88% (male 90%, female 61%) of cases a history of asbestos exposure was obtained. Exposures occurred in a wide variety of occupational and environmental circumstances. In 81% of cases with no history of exposure, TEM lung asbestos fibre counts >200000 fibres >2 µm length/g dry lung were obtained, suggesting unrecognized exposure. Australia's high incidence of mesothelioma is related to high past asbestos use, of all fibre types, in a wide variety of occupational and environmental settings. The number of cases in total is expected to be about 18000 by 2020, with about 11000 yet to appear. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To describe the incidence of malignant mesothelioma (MM) in Aboriginal people in Western Australia (WA) and determine the main routes of exposure to asbestos in this population., Methods: All MM cases in Western Australia, as well as the primary source of asbestos exposure, are recorded in the WA Mesothelioma Register. Aboriginal cases up to the end of 2013 were extracted from the register and compared with non-Aboriginal cases with respect to the primary means/source of exposure. Age-standardised incidence rates for each decade from 1980 were calculated for both Aboriginals and non-Aboriginals. Age-standardised mortality rates were calculated for the period 1994-2008 and compared with international rates., Results: There were 39 cases (77% male) of MM among WA Aboriginal people. Twenty-six (67%) were a direct result of the mining of crocidolite at Wittenoom and the subsequent contamination of the surrounding lands. Of the non-Aboriginal MM cases (n = 2070, 86.3% male), fewer than 25% can be attributed to Wittenoom. Aboriginals had consistently higher 10-year incidence rates than non-Aboriginals and, when compared to world populations, the highest mortality rate internationally., Conclusion: When incidence rates in Aboriginal people are compared with non-Aboriginal people, the Wittenoom mining operation has had a disproportionate effect on MM incidence in the local Aboriginal population., (© 2016 Public Health Association of Australia.)