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

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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.