Why we need funding for research into asbestos-related cancer

Most of us have no reason to worry about a sudden cough or slight wheeze, but not so for many thousands of people who have worked with asbestos. Generations of miners, welders and factory workers – and those who washed their work clothes – are among those at greater risk from the killer asbestos-related cancer mesothelioma. But with the cancer often emerging decades after exposure, those who have worked with asbestos can never be certain whether the slightest cough is the onset of the killer condition or not.

This is a cruel and, as yet, cure-less form of lung cancer that claims the lives of the majority of sufferers within 12 months of diagnosis. This year around 2500 people with mesothelioma will die in the UK – many of whom may not yet know they have it. And unless a cure can be found, the condition is expected to claim the lives of 60,000 people by 2045.

Despite the significant death rates and the aggressive nature of the condition – that can leave sufferers desperately gasping for breath, as if drowning – research funding in the UK has remained relatively low. That’s why yesterday I  introduced a Bill that would increase funding for vital research into this cancer.

The Mesothelioma (Amendment) Bill would legislate for all companies that sell Employers’ Liability Insurance to be compelled to make a small statutory contribution towards mesothelioma research. In January two such companies – Aviva and Zurich – made their own commitment to donate £1million over two years to the British Lung Foundation (BLF). This contribution to the BLF – whose research programme includes the launch of Europe’s first mesothelioma tissue bank – is to be welcomed and its impact should not be underestimated.

There are some who believe this is a model for how research into mesothelioma should be funded. However the voluntary nature of such financial commitments fails to provide the scale or security of funding that’s required if we are serious about understanding the condition and finding a cure. And that’s why I believe that there needs to be the statutory underpinning that I have put forward in the Bill today.

There are currently around 150 companies who sell Employers’ Liability Insurance products and would be covered by the legislation.And it has been estimated that should each company be compelled to make just a small contribution – as the Bill would require – it could transform the scale of mesothelioma research in the UK.

It is my clear view that if we are to build on the successes of current research by organisations such as the British Lung Foundation we need to take urgent action now to ensure their future funding is secure. Failure to do so is to jeopardise the success of future research into mesothelioma and to let down the many thousands of people who are at risk.

Mike Kane is the MP for Wythenshawe & Sale East