Mesothelioma: are nurses being put at risk in the workplace?

The cancer, caused by asbestos, could affect more staff than statistics suggest, say our expert authors

• Office for National Statistics analysis concludes that hospitals have little or no evidence of increased mesothelioma risk compared with the general population but this does not tally with the experience of many specialists
• Data show that at least 81% of organisations running hospitals in the UK have sites containing asbestos
• Analysis highlights good technical care of healthcare workers experiencing mesothelioma, but emotional care sometimes falls short, especially when carers are engaging with colleagues

Malignant mesothelioma is an aggressive, rare cancer caused by exposure to, and inhalation of, asbestos, a fibre-like material once widely used in the