Potential source of asbestos in non-asbestos textile manufacturing company Il Je Yu a,b, *, Jeong Keun Choi a , Seong-Kyu Kang a , Hee Kyung Chang c , Yong Hyun Chung a , Jeong Hee Han a , Kyung Seuk Song a , Yong Mook Lee a , Ho Keun Chung a a Center for Occupational Toxicology, Occupational Safety Health Research Institute, Korean Occupational Safety Health Agency, 104-8 Moonji-dong, Yusung-gu, Taejon, 305-380 South Korea b College of Pharmacy, Sung Kyun Kwan University, Suwon, South Korea c Department of Pathology, College of Medicine, Kosin University, Pusan, South Korea Received 13 July 2001; accepted 7 January 2002 Abstract Recently, a worker with lung carcinoma and a metastatic brain tumor was diagnosed as having a work-related disease. He had been employed in a non-asbestos textile company for 25 years. Consequently, to identify and explore possible causative agents for lung cancer in a non-asbestos textile manufacturing company and establish a causal relationship between exposure and lung cancer, an epidemiological investigative study was conducted and the work processes the worker was engaged in were examined. Air samples were taken from the workplace and during the drilling processes, and a suspected causative material was analyzed. The study revealed that the subject had been employed in the non-asbestos textile manufacturing company for 25 years from 1973 and his responsibilities included repairing spinning machines. In particular, the subject was involved in drilling B-bushings that were used to protect against gear abrasion in the spinning machines. An analysis of the B-bushings using a transmission electron microscope equipped with an energy dispersive X-ray analyzer indicated that they contained crocidolite asbestos fibers. Air samples obtained when drilling the B-bushings clearly indicated that the subject had most likely been exposed to crocidolite fibers when installing the B-bushings in the spinning machines. The frequency and duration of the work suggested that there would be a sufficient degree of exposure to crocidolite fibers to cause lung cancer. Except for smoking and asbestos exposure, no other chemical exposure was suspected for developing lung cancer in the workplace. Smoking appeared to be more of a potentiating risk factor in conjunction with the asbestos exposure. Accordingly, this case may provide significant evidence in identifying the cause of the mesothelioma or lung carcinoma found among workers in non-asbestos textile manufacturing companies elsewhere. D 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. Keywords: Asbestos; Non-asbestos textile manufacturing company; Crocidolite; Lung cancer; B-bushing; Occupational disease; Drilling 1. Introduction A causal relationship between asbestos exposure and subsequent mesothelioma or lung carcinoma has already been clearly established and many occupations have since been identified as being at risk (Wagner et al., 1960; Selikoff and Lee, 1978; IARC, 1982). As such, the higher-than-normal ratio of lung cancer in non-asbestos textile industries has been attributed to several causative agents (Paci et al., 1987a,b; Quinn et al., 1987). Those who have ‘‘ever worked’’ in the textile industry show an adjusted odds ratio of 1.52 compared with other industrial workers. Suggestions as to the possible source of exposure to asbestos in a non-asbestos textile industry have included asbestos-contaminated bags, which once contained asbestos (Quinn et al., 1987) or imported rags mixed with asbestos- contaminated clothing (Paci et al., 1987a,b). However, no definite causative source of asbestos for the diseases occur- ring in non-asbestos textile manufacturing companies has yet been identified. In 1999, a male worker who developed lung carcinoma accompanied by a metastatic brain tumor was diagnosed as 0160-4120/02/$ – see front matter D 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. PII:S0160-4120(02)00002-8 * Corresponding author. Center for Occupational Toxicology, Occupa- tional Safety Health Research Institute, Korean Occupational Safety Health Agency, 104-8 Moonji-dong, Yusung-gu, Taejon, 305-380 South Korea. Tel.: +82-42-863-8182; fax: +82-42-863-8361. E-mail address: u1670916@chollian.net (I.J. Yu). www.elsevier.com/locate/envint Environment International 28 (2002) 35 – 39