Health, Work, Invisibilities and Collective Resistance in an Asbestos-Exposed Territory in the Pedro Leopoldo Region, (MG), Brazil

Our plain-English summary of Health, Work, Invisibilities and Collective Resistance in an Asbestos-Exposed Territory in the Pedro Leopoldo Region, (MG), Brazil, by E.G. Felix, A.C. Guimaraes (International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2026).

The study

• Authors: E.G. Felix, A.C. Guimaraes
• Journal: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
• Published: 2026;23(3)
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher · Free full text

Abstract

Asbestos, a group 1 carcinogen, has generated a serious health and environmental liability in Pedro Leopoldo/MG, Brazil, even after its national ban in 2017. This study aims to analyze the silent epidemic of asbestos-related diseases (ARDs) through the lens of social injustice. We used a qualitative, socio-historical, and clinical approach within the framework of an Expanded Research Community (ERC), based on ergology, with content analysis of interviews with workers and institutional documents. The evidence reveals a pattern of institutional silencing and omission, marked by corporate fraud, denial of risk, and medical underreporting, perpetuating occupational, domestic, and environmental exposure. In response, the Brazilian Association of Asbestos-Exposed Individuals of Minas Gerais (ABREA/MG) emerged as a central actor in the struggle for recognition and justice. It is concluded that overcoming this injustice requires structured public policies of recognition, integrated surveillance, historical reparation, and strengthening of the SUS (Unified Health System), with collective resistance being fundamental to transforming suffering into memory and social demands.

In plain English

This was a qualitative, participatory study of how asbestos-related illness went unrecognized in Pedro Leopoldo, Minas Gerais, Brazil, and nearby towns. Industry there had processed chrysotile asbestos and, possibly, amphiboles. Between July 2021 and October 2022 the researcher held in-depth interviews and a group meeting with 36 people, 18 men and 18 women. All had already left the company. Recruitment included directly exposed workers and family members exposed indirectly, and was supported by ABREA/MG, the local association of asbestos-exposed people. Participants described ineffective masks, factory exams that rated a worker fit until an outside campaign found asbestosis, and labor inspections announced in advance. Only the men described collective mobilization. The women reported 12 abortions, which the authors said corresponded to approximately 70% of the women interviewed. The authors noted that miscarriage has many possible causes and called for investigation. In official mortality data for 2009 to 2020 that the authors presented, the mesothelioma rate for women was zero in every listed municipality. The authors concluded that recognition, integrated surveillance and reparation are needed.

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: Qualitative, exploratory and participatory research (action research within an Expanded Research Community based on ergology), using in-depth interviews, a group meeting and content analysis
• Who was studied: 36 participants (18 men and 18 women), all no longer employed by the company. They included directly exposed workers and family members with indirect exposure, from Pedro Leopoldo and the neighboring municipalities of Confins, São José da Lapa, Vespasiano and Matozinhos. Interviews took place between July 2021 and October 2022. Most participants were aged 60 to 70.
• Exposure: Occupational, domestic and environmental exposure linked to local industrial processing of chrysotile asbestos and, possibly, amphiboles, which the article dates to 1973 to 2019
• Main results:
  • Most categories about work dynamics and health effects were shared by the men and the women interviewed.
  • Only the men reported mobilization and resistance, which began through contact with the local union. No such mentions were identified among the women.
  • The women reported a total of 12 abortions, many of them recurrent, during their working period. The article says this corresponded to approximately 70% of the women interviewed. Abortions were mentioned only in the female group.
  • One male participant (H15) described the mask provided as almost useless and said it could only be changed three times a week.
  • A worker diagnosed with asbestosis said the factory's periodic exams always rated him fit until an external campaign by health institutions detected the disease.
  • Participants reported that labor inspection visits were announced in advance, allowing the company to simulate safety conditions.
  • One participant (H34) said that blue and brown asbestos held in stock was buried in a landfill near the river at the factory.
  • The authors compiled official mortality data for municipalities of the Belo Horizonte health region, 2009 to 2020. Crude mesothelioma mortality rates for men were 2.65 per 100,000 in Confins, 0.77 in São José da Lapa and 0.55 in Pedro Leopoldo, and 0.00 in Lagoa Santa, Matozinhos and Vespasiano. The rate for women was 0.00 in all listed municipalities.
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that overcoming this situation requires structured public policies: official recognition of exposed populations, integrated health and environmental surveillance with a gender perspective, historical reparation and institutional accountability. They also called for strengthening the SUS network for long-term follow-up.
• Limitations the authors state:
  • The researcher was native to the studied region. The authors acknowledged that this proximity could affect the analysis and adopted reflexive practices in response.
  • The authors noted that recurrent miscarriage may have multiple causes (hormonal, anatomical, genetic) and that its link to asbestos needs investigation.

Topics

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Environmental Exposure.

Related studies

• Asbestos and health in the Third World: the case of Brazil — D.M. Berman (1986)
• Invisible threats: environmental asbestos exposure and water contamination in a former mining area of Northeastern Brazil — O.S. Brito, M.F.M. Pereira, et al. (2026)
• Health implications of atmospheric aerosols from asbestos-bearing road pavements traditionally used in Southern Brazil — R.H.M. Godoi, S.J. Gonçalves, et al. (2016)
• Mesothelioma mortality in Brazil, 1980-2003 — F. Pedra, A.T. Tambellini, et al. (2008)
• Lung cancer in Brazil — E. Algranti, A.M. Menezes, et al. (2001)
• Analysis of Mortality from Asbestos-Related Diseases in Brazil Using Multiple Health Information Systems, 1996-2017 — E. Algranti, V.S. Santana, et al. (2022)

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