Before confirming a diagnosis of asbestosis, your doctor will ask you about your symptoms and listen to your lungs with a stethoscope. If your lungs have been affected by asbestosis, when you breathe they will make a distinctive crackling noise.

Your doctor will require details of your work history, including any times when you may have been exposed to asbestos, the length of any possible exposure, and whether you were issued with any safety equipment, such as a face mask.

If your doctor suspects asbestosis, a diagnosis can usually be confirmed by running a series of additional tests. These tests are described below.

Spirometer

A spirometer is a machine that measures how much oxygen you can breathe in, and how much carbon dioxide you can breathe out. These measurements can be used to assess how effective your lungs are.

X-rays

X-rays can detect abnormalities in the structure of your lungs that are caused by asbestosis.

CT scans

CT scans are more detailed than X-rays and can often be used to detect asbestosis in its earliest stage.

Treating asbestosis 

There are four main components to the treatment of asbestosis:

• quitting smoking (if you are a smoker),
• vaccinations against potentially dangerous lung conditions, such as influenza (flu),
• using medicines to make breathing easier, and, if necessary,
• using equipment, such as oxygen cylinders, to help with breathing.

While none of these components will be able to cure asbestosis, they can help control symptoms and improve your quality of life.

Quitting smoking

If you have been diagnosed with asbestosis, and you smoke, it is very important that you give up as soon as possible.

Smoking will make your symptoms of breathlessness worse, and it will also significantly increase your chances of developing lung cancer.

It is thought that smoking and asbestosis have a synergistic effect on the risk of developing lung cancer. This means that the combined risk associated with smoking and asbestosis is far higher than the sums of their individual risks.

For example, a non-smoker who has asbestosis is approximately three times more likely to develop lung cancer than a non-smoker who does not have asbestosis.

A smoker who does not have asbestosis is five-and-a-half times more likely to develop lung cancer than a non-smoker without asbestosis. However, a smoker who also has asbestosis is 14 times more likely to develop lung cancer than a non-smoker without asbestosis.

Speak to your doctor to get help with giving up smoking. They will be able to advise you about nicotine replacement therapies and prescription medicines, such as bupropion, which can greatly increase your chances of quitting successfully. They can also put you in touch with local support groups and one-to-one counsellors.

Vaccinations

If you have asbestosis, your lungs will be more vulnerable to the effects of infection. Therefore, it is recommended that you receive vaccinations against influenza and the pneumococcus bacteria, which can cause serious chest infections. Your doctor will be able to arrange these vaccinations for you.

You will require a dose of the influenza vaccine every year. Most people only require one dose of the pneumococcus vaccine, although additional booster shots may be recommended if your general health is poor.

Medicines

Medicines known as bronchodilators are widely used to treat asbestosis. Bronchodilators are usually taken using an inhaler.

Bronchodilator inhalers deliver a small dose of medicine directly into your lungs, causing the muscles of your airways to relax and open up, making breathing easier.

Theophyllines are another type of medicine that is used in the treat asbestosis. This oral medication helps to widen your airways by relaxing the muscles around them.

In some people, theophyllines have been known to cause a number of side effects including:

• headaches,
• nausea,
• insomnia,
• vomiting,
• irritability, and
• stomach upsets.

Oxygen therapy

If your shortness of breath is particularly bad, your body may not be getting all the oxygen that it needs. If this is the case, oxygen therapy will be required using a machine called an oxygen concentrator.

The air that we breathe has quite a low amount of oxygen in it. In fact, oxygen only makes up about 21% of the atmosphere. An oxygen concentrator is plugged into a mains socket and purifies oxygen from the air in the room, producing a more oxygen-rich supply of air. You can then breathe the oxygen-rich air though a mask. The tube connecting the mask is very long, so you will be able to move around your home freely.

Do not smoke when you are using an oxygen concentrator. The increased level of oxygen that is produced is highly flammable, and a lit cigarette could trigger a fire, or an explosion.

In addition to the oxygen concentrator, you may also be given a small, portable oxygen tank and mask that you can use when you leave your house. This is known as ambulatory oxygen.

Preventing asbestosis 

The use of asbestos has now been banned in many countries. However, it is still in use in many developing countries.  But in some developed countries buildings any building that was built, or refurbished, before the year 2000 could contain asbestos.

In the UK, under the terms of the Control of Asbestos Regulations (2006), materials that contain asbestos have been divided into unlicensed and licensed materials.

Unlicensed asbestos materials

Unlicensed asbestos materials are not thought to be dangerous, but you should not work with them unless you have received adequate training and have the right protective equipment, such as a face mask.

Examples of unlicensed asbestos materials include:

• asbestos cement wall panels,
• asbestos cement roofs,
• asbestos floor tiles, and
• asbestos fire blankets.

Licensed asbestos materials

Licensed asbestos materials are thought to be dangerous, and only people who have obtained a license from the UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) are authorised to work with them.

Examples of licensed asbestos materials include:

• asbestos insulation on pipes,
• asbestos lagging on pipes,
• asbestos insulating board panels,
• asbestos insulated board ceiling tiles,
• sprayed asbestos coating on walls, ceilings, beams, and columns.

If you are unsure about whether the asbestos materials that you are working with might pose a risk to your health, you should stop working and seek advice from your employer. 

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