Japan’s Environment Ministry reports rate of asbestos-related mesothelioma 14 times higher in Amagasaki than national average
Japan’s Environment Ministry reported on Monday that residents of Amagasaki, Hyogo Prefecture who lived there between the 1950s and the 1970s suffered a rate of mesothelioma–a rare cancer caused by asbestos–14 times higher than Japan’s national average. For women who lived around area factories that used asbestos, the rate of mesothelioma was an astounding 69 times the national average. The Environment Ministry conducted the epidemiological survey covering around 180,000 people who lived in Amagasaki between 1955 and 1974–the time period in which area plants released asbestos into the air.
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