Occupational and non-occupational attributable risk of asbestos exposure for malignant pleural mesothelioma

The authors performed a population-based study to determine the extent to which mesothelioma occurs absent occupational asbestos exposure. A clear dose-response relationship between degree of exposure and risk of mesothelioma was identified. Occupational exposure to asbestos carried a much higher risk of mesothelioma than did non-occupational exposure, and non-occupational exposure carried a higher risk than did no exposure. Non-occupational exposure to asbestos carried a substantially higher mesothelioma risk in women than it did in men.