Unsafe Products M esothelioma Malignant mesothelioma is a cancer of the linings of the chest cavity, or surrounding the organs of the abdomen.
Asbestos causes mesothelioma.
Cigarette smoking does not cause the development of malignant mesothelioma. A person with mesothelioma got the disease from asbestos, regardless of whether they were a smoker. Malignant mesothelioma is uncommon and often difficult to diagnose. All forms of asbestos are capable of causing it. Because mesothelioma can take years to develop into diagnosable disease, and because almost all workers did not know at the time of exposure that asbestos could cause disease, the patient is often unable to pinpoint the period of exposure at first.