Mesothelioma Cases Above 3,000 in Recent Years

Mesothelioma is a rare cancer caused by exposure to asbestos. During the 21st century, the average number of mesothelioma cases in the U.S. each year was 2,500-3,000.

Scientists and mesothelioma advocates hoped for fewer cases of mesothelioma as asbestos was less prominent in American manufacturing. However, a new report is a setback in those dreams.

Data published in the scientific journal Lung Cancer shows that more than 3,000 people in the United States developed mesothelioma in 2021. This is the most recent year with incidence data.

This number of annual mesothelioma cases is similar to the number earlier in the 21st century, proving that the asbestos cancer is not going away.

 

What Is Mesothelioma and Why Is It Deadly?

Mesothelioma is a cancer that forms in the lining of the lungs or abdominal cavity. While it’s considered rare compared to other types of cancer, for approximately 3,000 people each year, this deadly disease upends their lives along with the lives of their loved ones.

Some of the facts about mesothelioma explain why this cancer is so deadly. Most cases of mesothelioma are diagnosed in late stages due to symptoms mimicking other diseases, such as pneumonia.

The cancer also mostly affects elderly people due to the 20-to-50-year latency period, which is the amount of time the disease takes to develop. Elderly people are often already weaker physically to fight cancer.

Lastly, mesothelioma spreads quickly. Tumors often reach the lungs or organs within the abdominal cavity before patients are diagnosed and can begin treatment.

This all adds up to poor survival rates – the 5-year survival rate is less than 10% – and a high mortality rate.

 

How Many People Die From Mesothelioma Worldwide Each Year?

For the study published in Lung Cancer, the researchers evaluated mesothelioma incidence from 1990-2021 in 204 countries and territories. The number of mesothelioma cases worldwide increased 93.5% from 1990 to 2021 – 16,493 cases worldwide in 1990 and 31,908 cases in 2021.

Deaths from mesothelioma increased 96.4% during the study period: 15,084 deaths worldwide in 1990 and 29,619 deaths in 2021.

 

How Many People in the U.S. Die of Mesothelioma Each Year?

The United States had the second-highest number of mesothelioma cases and mesothelioma deaths among the 204 countries and territories in the study. The U.S. had 3,036 cases in 2021 and 3,010 deaths that year.

China (3,046) had the most mesothelioma cases and mesothelioma deaths (3,010) in 2021. The United Kingdom and India were third and fourth, respectively, in both categories.

 

Mesothelioma Cases Are Not Dropping – What’s to Come?

Asbestos is a natural mineral with specific appealing properties for industrialism, most notably the ability to absorb heat and protect machinery parts from damage. During the 20th century, asbestos was a prized mineral in construction, insulation, and automobile work.

By 1980, scientific research showed asbestos was linked to cancer. When the public learned of this link – and when litigation started against companies that manufactured – American manufacturing moved away from using asbestos.

The collective movement away from asbestos – pushing the mineral’s presence in American manufacturing into the past – was a hopeful sign. Experts hoped the number of mesothelioma cases and mesothelioma deaths would decrease over time due to the reduced use of asbestos in manufacturing. 

However, the research in Lung Cancer shows that’s not immediately the case – at least yet – and the desired reduction in mesothelioma incidence might still be a few years away.

The banning of asbestos could spark a drop in cases. In 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) banned chrysotile asbestos, which is the most common type used in manufacturing.

A separate study published in Lung Cancer concluded that most countries with asbestos bans have had declining trends in in asbestos-related cancer cases from 2019-2021.

So the drop is likely coming – soon.