Raleigh, NC (PRWEB) July 01, 2014

Researchers with the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences say an industrial chemical called vinylidene chloride (VDC) may cause cellular damage that can lead to malignant mesothelioma. Click here to read details of new study, just posted on the Surviving Mesothelioma website.

Laboratory scientists based in North Carolina’s Research Triangle Park compared mesothelioma cells from rats exposed to VDC with mesothelioma cells from rats that had not been exposed. They found certain differences they believe accounted for the increased mesothelioma risk.

“[The] chronic, pro-inflammatory environment associated with VDC exposure may exacerbate disturbances in oncogene, growth factor, and cell cycle regulation, resulting in an increased incidence of mesothelioma,” states lead author Dr. Pamela Blackshear with the Cellular and Molecular Pathology Branch of the NIEHS.

The study published in Toxicologic Pathology suggests that, although an estimated 80 percent of mesothelioma cases are caused by asbestos, VDC may play a role in some of the remaining 20 percent.

“A history of asbestos exposure is a primary factor in most mesothelioma cases, but some are more of a mystery,” says Surviving Mesothelioma’s Managing Editor, Alex Strauss. “Understanding some of the more obscure potential risk factors may make it easier to recognize and treat more of these ‘unexplained’ mesothelioma cases.”

Read more about VDC and its potential connection to mesothelioma in Industrial Chemical Found to Raise Mesothelioma Risk in Rats, now available on the Surviving Mesothelioma website.

Blackshear, PE et al, “Gene Expressions of Mesothelioma in Vinylidene Chloride-exposed F344/N Rats Reveal Immune Dysfunction, Tissue Damage, and Inflammation Pathways”, June 23, 2014, Toxicologic Pathology, Epub ahead of print, http://tpx.sagepub.com/content/early/2014/06/20/0192623314537885.abstract?rss=1

For nearly ten years, Surviving Mesothelioma has brought readers the most important and ground-breaking news on the causes, diagnosis and treatment of mesothelioma. All Surviving Mesothelioma news is gathered and reported directly from the peer-reviewed medical literature. Written for patients and their loved ones, Surviving Mesothelioma news helps families make more informed decisions.






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