Medical Researches

Variation in the incidence of malignant mesothelioma is reported in different parts
of the world. For example, seven people per million in Japan have been diagnosed
with malignant mesothelioma compared with 40 people per million in Australia.
These differences are largely attributable to the amount of asbestos ‘consumed’ in
a certain period (25).
Australia, as one of the largest consumers of asbestos worldwide in the post-World War
II period, has one of the highest incidences of malignant mesothelioma. Around 660 new
cases of malignant mesothelioma were documented in 2007 and, in terms of mortality,
this disease is approaching the numbers of deaths caused by multiple myeloma and
ovarian cancer.
There is also regional variation in the incidence of malignant mesothelioma. For example,
in Australia the highest reported incidence has been in men in Western Australia. This
variation is largely attributable to occupational exposure associated with crocidolite
mining in Wittenoom
Most deaths caused by malignant mesothelioma in Australia and other developed
countries are due to occupational exposure to asbestos. The frequency of cases
attributable to occupational exposure may have begun to decline owing to stringent
control of asbestos use and handling. Asbestos, however, persists in our natural and
built environments, and it is important that we continue to minimise exposure to it
by all reasonable means. Among mesothelioma patients who do not have a history of
occupational exposure, there is now a high proportion of people with a history of home
renovation, in which exposure to asbestos might have occurred (26). Research is needed
to determine if asbestos exposure explains this high proportion. It is important also that
we remain alert to sources of possible exposure to asbestos in the community and control
any such exposure as it is identified.

Data on the incidence and mortality of malignant mesothelioma in Aboriginal and Torres
Strait Islanders and culturally and linguistically diverse groups has not been reliably
estimated due to the lack of recorded ethnicity. However, from July 2010, all new cases
of malignant mesothelioma diagnosed in Australia are monitored by the Australian
Mesothelioma Registry.