Establishment of a Latrobe Valley power industry cohort and biospecimen bank for the study of asbestos related disease

自20世纪20年代以来，拉特罗布山谷一直是维多利亚发电的地点。大量的石棉被用于建造发电站和为建造和操作发电站的工人建造住房。众所周知，砷会导致一种称为间皮瘤的肺腔衬里肿瘤。间皮瘤是一种高度衰弱的肿瘤，诊断后中位生存期低至7个月。间皮瘤可以发生在石棉暴露的个人长达40年的暴露后，因此，间皮瘤病例的高峰数量预计不会在澳大利亚的另一个10-20年。间皮瘤的发病率在拉特罗布山谷是几倍的国家平均水平。我们将招募5000名石棉暴露的前电力行业工人，并提供信息，支持和戒烟运动。对于1000名最高度暴露的人，我们将提供每年一次的间皮素检测，这是一种血液中的蛋白质，可能在临床诊断之前表明间皮瘤的存在。

The Latrobe Valley has been the site of Victoria�s electricity generation since the 1920�s. Very large amounts of asbestos were used in the construction of power stations and housing for the workers employed to build and operate them. Asbestos is known to cause a tumour of the lining of the lung cavity called mesothelioma. Mesothelioma is a highly debilitating tumour, with a median survival as low as seven months following diagnosis. Mesothelioma can occur in asbestos exposed individuals up to forty years following exposure, and as such, the peak number of cases of mesothelioma is not expected in Australia for another 10-20 years. The incidence of mesothelioma in the Latrobe Valley is several fold the state average. We will recruit a cohort of 5000 asbestos exposed former power industry workers, and provide information, support and smoking cessation campaigns. For 1000 of the most highly exposed we will offer annual testing for mesothelin, a protein in the blood which may indicate the presence of mesothelioma prior to a clinical diagnosis.