Scientific Aspects of the Work of the Commission of the European Communities on Asbestos

Our plain-English summary of Scientific Aspects of the Work of the Commission of the European Communities on Asbestos, by W.J. Hunter, P. Recht (1980).

The study

• Authors: W.J. Hunter, P. Recht
• Published: BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF MINERAL FIBRES (J.C. WAGNER, EDITOR), LYON: IARC SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS, VOLUME 30, PP. 775-782 (1980)
• Type of article: Conference paper
• Our copy: from Johns-Manville's own medical library. The article is still under copyright, so we describe it here rather than post it.

In plain English

This paper was a review, not a study of patients or workers. It described scientific work on asbestos carried out by the Commission of the European Communities (CEC) in its Member States. In a comparative programme, laboratories measured chrysotile and amphibole on air sampling filters, each using its own technique. The results of the first programme were poor. A small electron microscopy comparison of asbestos in lung tissue showed an excellent correlation for fibre counts per gram. For chrysotile fibres, length measurements differed two-fold, which could be due to observer error. A CEC Asbestosis Panel's working definition was diffuse interstitial lung fibrosis related to asbestos dust exposure, which had to be shown by coated and/or uncoated asbestos fibres in the fibrous tissue under the light microscope. An EEC Mesothelioma Panel reviewed needle biopsies and recommended the Abrams' needle. From national panel data it estimated that between 500 and 1000 mesotheliomas occur per year in the Member States. The authors concluded that this work had helped establish the current situation regarding asbestos on sound scientific and technical grounds.

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: Review of scientific studies and expert panel work carried out by the Commission of the European Communities
• Who was studied: No group of people was studied directly. The paper covered CEC activities across the Member States: comparative measurement programmes, a CEC Asbestosis Panel, and an EEC Mesothelioma Panel. The mesothelioma panel had one pathologist from each Member State plus a member with statistical experience, and had held four meetings to date.
• Exposure: Asbestos in general. Chrysotile and amphibole fibres were measured on air sampling filters and in lung tissue.
• Main results:
  • In the first comparative programme, laboratories measured chrysotile and amphibole on air sampling filters. The results were poor.
  • A small comparative electron microscopy study of asbestos in lung tissue showed an excellent correlation for the number of chrysotile and amphibole fibres per gram of tissue. The correlation was also excellent for the mean diameter and length of amphibole fibres.
  • In the same lung tissue comparison, length measurements of chrysotile fibres differed two-fold. The authors said this could be due to observer error.
  • The same programme found small differences in asbestos concentration between parts of the lungs, while the bulk chemical composition was relatively constant.
  • At its second meeting in 1978, the CEC Asbestosis Panel adopted a working definition: asbestosis is a diffuse interstitial fibrosis of the lung parenchyma related to asbestos dust exposure. This has to be demonstrated by coated and/or uncoated asbestos fibres in the fibrous tissue, identified under the light microscope.
  • The EEC Mesothelioma Panel reviewed the use of needle biopsy material and recommended the Abrams' needle for biopsy.
  • From data coordinated from national panels, it was estimated that between 500 and 1000 mesotheliomas occur per year in the Member States.
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that the Commission's studies and research activities had helped to establish the current situation regarding asbestos on sound scientific and technical grounds.
• Limitations the authors state:
  • The authors stated that further standardized work would be needed before the exposure-response relationship for asbestosis could be assessed.
  • The two-fold difference in chrysotile fibre length measurements could be due to observer error.

Topics

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Chrysotile, Amphibole Group, Air Sampling, Interstitial, Fibrosis, Mesothelioma.

Browse return to medical research.