Asbestos is most often associated with which medical condition?

Exposure to asbestos is often associated with a type of cancer known as mesothelioma. The name comes from the fact that the disease affects the mesothelium, a part of the body which lines many internal organs. Asbestosis is another condition which is caused by exposure to this element. While not as deadly as mesothelioma, asbestosis causes scarring and inflammation of the lungs and may lead to respiratory failure.

Asbestos was once common in houses and other buildings, but once its link to cancer had been firmly established in the 1980s, there was a nation-wide campaign to eliminate any exposure to it.