The Asbestos Injury Relief Act in Korea requires that asbestos exposure be assessed through clinical examination and chest computed tomography (CT). However, a more specific measurement of asbestos characteristics in the lung tissue may be appropriate. We aimed to investigate the asbestos burden and characterize asbestos fibers in patients with lung cancer and ultimately assess the relationship between occupational and environmental asbestos exposure and lung cancer in Korea. We evaluated 37 lung cancer patients (LCPs) from Busan. The factors affecting asbestos burden in LCPs were analyzed using a multiple regression analysis. History of asbestos exposure (environmental/occupational), male sex, and old age were the main factors affecting asbestos burden in lung tissues of LCPs. These factors had an approximate 37% adjusted coefficient of determination. There was a significant difference in the length of asbestos fibers (4.06–37.6 µm vs. 4.26–91.7 µm) and aspect ratio (4.5–151.9 vs. 5.6–735.6) between those who were occupationally exposed to asbestos and those who were environmentally exposed (P < 0.01). Therefore, both environmental/occupational exposure to asbestos should be strongly managed to reduce the risk of lung cancer, and exposure should be assessed according to the characteristics of asbestos fibers in the lung tissue.

韩国的《石棉伤害救济法》要求通过临床检查和胸部计算机断层扫描（CT）评估石棉暴露。但是，肺组织中石棉特征的更具体测量可能是合适的。我们的目的是调查肺癌患者的石棉负担和表征石棉纤维，并最终评估在韩国职业和环境石棉暴露与肺癌之间的关系。我们评估了釜山的37名肺癌患者（LCP）。使用多元回归分析分析了影响LCP中石棉负担的因素。石棉接触史（环境/职业），男性和老年是影响LCP肺组织石棉负担的主要因素。这些因素具有约37％的调整后确定系数。职业接触石棉的人与环境接触石棉的人的石棉纤维长度（4.06–37.6 µm与4.26–91.7 µm）和长宽比（4.5–151.9 vs. 5.6–735.6）之间存在显着差异。 （P <0.01）。因此，应严格管理环境/职业对石棉的接触以降低患肺癌的风险，并应根据肺组织中石棉纤维的特性评估接触量。