Asbestos is a mineral fiber found in rocks.
There are several kinds of asbestos fibers, all of which are fire resistant and not easily destroyed or degraded by natural processes. Asbestos has been found to cause cancer of the lungs and stomach, according to studies of workers and others exposed to asbestos. There is no level of exposure to asbestos fibers that experts can assure is completely safe. Some asbestos materials can break into small fibers that can float in the air, and these fibers can be inhaled. You cannot see these tiny fibers, and they are so small that they pass through the filters of ordinary vacuum cleaners and get back into the air.