Comments on the introduction of the paper "Overview of the biochemical and genetic processes in malignant mesothelioma"

Our plain-English summary of Comments on the introduction of the paper "Overview of the biochemical and genetic processes in malignant mesothelioma", by A. Eduardo (Jornal Brasileiro de Pneumologia, 2014).

The study

• Author: A. Eduardo
• Journal: Jornal Brasileiro de Pneumologia
• Published: 2014;40(5):584-5
• Type of article: Letter, Comment
• Language: Portuguese
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher · Free full text

In plain English

This was a letter to the editor, not a research study, and reported no new data. The author commented on the introduction of a review by Assis and Isoldi on biochemical and genetic processes in malignant mesothelioma (MM). The author disputed the review's statement that MM is strongly correlated with simian virus 40 (SV40). The author acknowledged earlier studies linking SV40 to MM cases, but noted that studies of populations exposed to contaminated vaccines showed no increased cancer incidence, including MM. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) had classified SV40 as Group 3 because human evidence was inadequate. The author also disputed the review's statement that chrysotile asbestos's role in MM is considerably debated, and its unreferenced statement that there are reports that chrysotile cannot cause MM in humans. IARC lists chrysotile as a Group 1 carcinogen, and chrysotile's potential to cause MM has been reported as one order of magnitude lower than that of amphibole asbestos. The author concluded that the review's introduction contained poorly substantiated or incorrect statements about the potency of MM-causing agents.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: Letter to the editor commenting on a published review article; no original data
• Who was studied: No study population. The letter responds to a 2014 review by Assis and Isoldi, published in the same journal, on mechanisms of tumorigenesis in malignant mesothelioma.
• Exposure: Agents the review linked to malignant mesothelioma: asbestos (with discussion of chrysotile versus amphibole asbestos), erionite, and simian virus 40 (SV40)
• Main results:
  • This is the author's argument, not a research finding: on the available evidence, it is incorrect to say that MM is strongly correlated with SV40.
  • The author acknowledged earlier studies by others that had reported a role for SV40 in MM cases.
  • The author cited epidemiological studies by others in which populations exposed to contaminated vaccines showed no increased incidence of cancer, including MM.
  • The author cited the IARC review, which found inadequate evidence in humans that SV40 causes cancer and classified it as Group 3.
  • The author disputed the review's statement that the role of chrysotile asbestos in the genesis of MM is the subject of considerable debate.
  • The author objected that the review stated, without giving any reference, that there are reports that chrysotile asbestos cannot cause MM in humans. The author said this is not the consensus.
  • The author cited IARC's classification of chrysotile as a Group 1 carcinogen.
  • The author cited a report by others that chrysotile's potential to cause MM is one order of magnitude lower than that of amphibole asbestos.
• The authors' conclusion: The author concluded that the review's introduction contained poorly substantiated or incorrect statements about the potency of agents that cause MM, and about the causal relationships between human exposure to those agents and MM.

Topics

The National Library of Medicine indexes this study under subjects our site covers: Lung cancer, Mesothelioma.

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Mesothelioma.

Related studies

• Overview of the biochemical and genetic processes in malignant mesothelioma — L.V. Assis, M.C. Isoldi (2014)
• Comment on the paper 'Boffetta et al. Validation of the diagnosis of mesothelioma and BAP1 protein expression in a cohort of asbestos textile workers from Northern Italy. Ann Oncol 2018; 29(2): 484-489' — D. Consonni, C. Mensi (2019)
• An introduction to the short-term toxicology of respirable industrial fibres — K. Donaldson, C.L. Tran (2004)
• Population-based survival for malignant mesothelioma after introduction of novel chemotherapy — R.A. Damhuis, C. Schroten, et al. (2012)
• Asbestos body formation and iron accumulation in mouse peritoneal granulomas after the introduction of crocidolite asbestos fibers — H.K. Koerten, J. Hazekamp, et al. (1990)
• The third wave of asbestos disease: exposure to asbestos in place. Public health control. Introduction — P.J. Landrigan (1991)

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