Pleural plaques and risk of cancer in Turin, northwestern Italy. An autopsy study.

The relationship between the occurrence of neoplastic diseases and the presence of pleural plaques was studied in a series of 1097 autopsies performed in Turin from the adult general population. In men, pleural plaques showed an association with the presence of laryngeal, pulmonary, esophageal, and colorectal cancer. Only cancer of the larynx was strongly related to the occurrence of such pleural changes. This autopsy investigation confirms previous observations by others based on x-ray findings, and suggests that pleural plaques may be regarded as risk indicators of possibly asbestos-related tumors in the general population.