General Question About Exposures to carcinogens

merianne · Regular Joined: 06 Dec 2004 Posts: 16 Location: lakeland

Hi this is my first time here. I found you through the cancer blog. My question is about the general articles referring to exposures to pesticides and benzenes. What kind of exposure are they referring to. Years, months, weeks, or one or two times ever. I have flowers and use fertilizer in my flower beds, I have been in a housefire and plastic curtains caught on fire and burned. I got a lot of smoke in my lungs and had laryngitis for quite a while. This was years ago. I am not worried for me, but aggravated by the general references. Another question is about the severity of symptoms. So many times articles about Lymphoma refer to mild symptoms but do not say whether the symptoms are enough to interfere with daily life or if you have to search and search to be aware of them.
The reason I ask these questions is because I do a lot of general education in my job with people who may never see a doctor for health reasons unless I can convince them. I see a lot of cases of drug related illnesses where I work.
_________________
If the world ended tomorrow, there would still be today.

leo · Site Admin Joined: 23 Sep 2004 Posts: 1574

Marienne

Thanks for posting. All these articles refer to chronic exposure to carcinogenic chemicals. For someone that is occasionally exposed it is not a big deal. The same with asbestos, for example, people that develop mesothelioma due to asbestos are usually people that work with this compound, miners or people that worked in factories where asbestos was extensively used. As far as benzene and pesticides, the best you can do is to use a good mask and gloves when handling the product. Avoid unnecessary contact. This applies to all chemicals, as a matter of fact. We never know what we may discover in the future with chemicals we have been using for a while.

As far as lymphoma, usually the symptoms are: enlarged lymphnodes, night sweats, weight loss, fevers. But these are not specific, as this may be difficult to diagnose at times.

best regards,
Leo
_________________
Leonardo F - Webmaster Cancer Forums
Disclaimer: this information is for informational purposes only. It is not medical advice.

	Cancer Forums Forum Index -> Lymphoma - Hodgkin's and Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma Forum	All times are GMT - 5 Hours
Page 1 of 1

A website for discussions about any type of cancer, including lung cancer, breast cancer, mesothelioma, prostate cancer, laryngeal cancer, leukemia, lymphoma, multiple myeloma and others