Mick Knighton Mesothelioma Research Fund has petitioned the UK government for the establishment of a National Centre for Asbestos Related Disease with a funding of £7m. A petition, containing 24,000 signatures, was submitted by Chris Knighton, who works with the research fund, to Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

Mr. Knighton said that asbestos related diseases, caused mostly due to exposure to this deadly substance in the workplace, are widespread in UK. The most severe among these diseases is Mesothelioma, which is a cancer of lining of the lungs. Mesothelioma alone causes death of close to 2000 people every year in the UK and the number is expected to keep rising by 2015.

He called for urgent action as every moment wasted makes the situation worse for the victims. He said that NCARD would be a virtual centre, which will ensure funding of research and development activities regarding asbestos-related diseases. It will also lead to a coordinated effort into the discovery of life saving drugs for such diseases.

The activists are also looking forward to more medical experts joining asbestos related research, as more money is made available to support studies in this area.

Funding from the government becomes important because currently all the work in this area is done by voluntary organisations which depend on public contributions. This is not sufficient considering the severity of the situation and thus some constructive intervention from the government in necessary.

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