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

自1920年��S以来，拉特罗布河谷一直是维多利亚·S发电的地方。非常大量的石棉被用于建造发电站以及为建造和运营发电站的工人提供住房。众所周知，石棉会导致肺腔衬里的一种肿瘤，称为间皮瘤。间皮瘤是一种高度衰弱的肿瘤，确诊后中位生存期低至7个月。间皮瘤可能发生在接触石棉后长达40年的个人身上，因此，澳大利亚间皮瘤病例的高峰期预计在未来10-20年内不会出现。拉特罗布河谷间皮瘤的发病率是该州平均水平的几倍。我们将招募5000名接触石棉的前电力行业工人，并提供信息、支持和戒烟运动。对于1000名暴露程度最高的患者，我们将提供间皮蛋白的年度检测，这是一种血液中的蛋白质，可能在临床诊断之前表明存在间皮瘤。

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.