In a new study that was just published in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report by the CDC, researchers looked at the mortality rate from malignant mesothelioma in females living in the United States.

Men who work in areas such as construction and manufacturing are frequently exposed to asbestos at work. Women have also been exposed to asbestos, according to various research. However, there is limited information on the fatality rates associated with mesothelioma in women.

In this study, researchers categorized the fatalities reported as mesothelioma-related and evaluated the temporal trends linked with mesothelioma mortality among women in the United States.

Death certificates with the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) code for malignant mesothelioma were included in the study, which covered the years 1999 to 2020. Because of the extended latency of mesothelioma, the research was limited to deaths reported in women aged 25 and over. To estimate the time trends in mortality across the country, age-adjusted death rates were assessed for each state.

In addition, the team classified several professions using the four-digit US Census Bureau coding system from 2012. As a result, the researchers discovered data on industries and occupations for 92.3 percent of all malignant mesothelioma deaths recorded across 47 counties in the United States.

According to the findings, the annual number of deaths among women due to mesothelioma grew significantly from 489 in 1999 to 614 in 2020. However, in 1999, the death rate per million women was 4.83, and by 2020, it had dropped to 4.15. Furthermore, the health care and social support industries, as well as the housewife occupation, had the highest number of deaths due to mesothelioma.

Between 1999 and 2020, a total of 12,227 women aged 25 and above died of malignant mesothelioma, with malignant mesothelioma accounting for 94.0 percent of deaths. Malignant mesothelioma was shown to be responsible for 90.7 percent of deaths in women aged 55 and up. Furthermore, White women accounted for 93.6 percent of malignant mesothelioma deaths, while non-Hispanic women accounted for 94.6 percent.

7.9 percent of the recorded deaths were due to pleural mesothelioma, 9.2 percent to peritoneal mesothelioma, 0.3 percent to pericardial mesothelioma, 11.3 percent to other locations, and 72.3 percent to an undetermined location. The researchers also discovered that the age-adjusted death rate for malignant mesothelioma was more than 6.0 per million women in Maine, Louisiana, Minnesota, Oregon, Montana, Wisconsin, and Washington from 1999 to 2020.

The health care and social support industry accounted for 15,7 percent of deaths due to malignant mesothelioma, 11.3 percent for education services, and 8.8 percent for manufacturing among the 21 industry groupings examined by the researchers. Malignant mesothelioma was indicated as the cause of death in the death certificates of 132 women in 2020. The researchers also discovered that 22.8 percent of homemakers, 5.6 percent of elementary and middle school teachers, and 4.9 percent of registered nurses died of malignant mesothelioma.

Overall, the outcomes of the study underscored the significance of closely monitoring the possible danger of asbestos fiber exposure in order to reduce malignant mesothelioma mortality.

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