You likely won’t feel any different shortly after being exposed to asbestos. However, once the fibers are inside your body, they’ll slowly damage healthy tissues and organs over a long period of time.
This irritation can eventually cause lung cancer, mesothelioma, or other asbestos-related diseases 10-50 years after exposure.
Doctors can’t predict which asbestos-related disease (if any) you’ll develop after being exposed.