Asbestos is definitely due to quite high doses of asbestos. The total amount of asbestos build-up in the body is what matters. Asbestosis usually takes at least ten years to develop after first exposure. Benign asbestos related pleural diseases is caused by moderate levels of asbestos exposure but less than the levels usually required to cause asbestosis. Pleural plaques usually require a moderate asbestos exposure, but occasionally plaques may be seen in what seems to have been fairly light exposure.
Lung cancer is linked to the amount of asbestos exposure, as well as the amount of smoking.
Mesothelioma may occur with very little asbestos exposure. Smoking and asbestos Smoking and asbestos exposure act together to multiply the number of lung cancer cases. Stopping smoking does help to reduce this high lung cancer risk in asbestos workers. Smoking also increases the risk of asbestosis, probably because it reduces the natural cleansing process of the lungs. As far as we know, stopping smoking will not reduce the risk of mesothelioma or asbestos related pleural disease.