肺がん・悪性中皮腫―タバコや石綿による発がん―

抄録

Lung cancer is one of the most common causes of cancer death in Japan. Cigarette smoking is the major cause of lung cancer. Asbestos exposure is also known to cause lung cancer and malignant mesothelioma, which is a tumor derived from mesothelial cells lining on a serosal cavity. Pleural mesothelioma is the most frequent type of mesothelioma. The annual number of deaths from mesothelioma has been increasing rapidly, reflecting the past asbestos exposure in Japan. In this paper, we describe the mechanisms of carcinogenicity of cigarette smoke and asbestos, and review the etiology, clinical and pathological features of lung cancer and mesothelioma.