Silicosis
Jo Feary talks about artificial stone silicosis on BBC Morning Live
Tue, 13 May 2025
Dr Johanna Feary was recently featured on BBC Morning Live at Royal Brompton Hospital to talk about silicosis due to artificial stone, and advises those working with the material to get their lungs checked.
The feature also includes an interview with our patient Ryan, who spoke about how his silicosis diagnosis has affected his life. Nurse Tamanna Kabir was also featured performing spirometry with Ryan.
Jo Feary talks about artificial stone silicosis on Channel 4 News
Mon, 28 Oct 2024
Dr Johanna Feary, Honorary Consultant in Occupational Lung Disease and Asthma, and patient Marek Marzec were recently interviewed by Channel 4 News to discuss the dangers of silicosis due to artificial stone. The piece was aired on Monday 28th October 2024 and you can watch it online here.
Media coverage of silicosis from artificial stone
Mon, 11 May 2026
Unlike natural stone, artificial or engineered stone contains extremely high silica content (up to 95% silica) and when disturbed and inhaled it can cause silicosis, an irreversible occupational lung disease.
Patrick Howlett shortlisted for MRC Max Perutz Science Writing Award 2025
Fri, 28 Nov 2025
Dr Patrick Howlett was shortlisted for the MRC Max Perutz Science Writing Award 2025 for his article on why his area of research matters, titled "Silicosis and tuberculosis: half the world away".
The annual award has been running for 27 years, and is a science communication competition for current MRC PhD students.
Prevalence and determinants of evidence of silicosis and impaired lung function among small scale tanzanite miners and the peri-mining community in northern Tanzania
Limited data among miners in Tanzania suggests prevalence of silicosis, obstructive lung disease and restrictive lung disease to be around 1.6%, 1.9% and 8.8% respectively. Our study aimed to determine the prevalence and factors associated with silicosis and impaired lung function among tanzanite mining community in northern Tanzania. We conducted a cross-sectional study, involving 330 miners and 330 peri-mining community members in Mererani mines.
Professor Weihong Chen talk on silicosis
Wed, 09 Apr 2025
We were delighted to welcome Professor Weihong Chen, a global expert in silicosis to speak at our departmental seminar this week on the "Exposure-response analysis of silica dust exposure and related adverse health effects using Chinese cohort data”. She gave a fabulous talk and showcased the rich datasets that she is involved with. We hope to collaborate with her in the future on research projects.
Relationship between cumulative silica exposure and silicosis: a systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis
Silicosis and silicotuberculosis among respiratory hospital admissions: A cross-sectional survey in northern Tanzania
Silicosis, tuberculosis and silica exposure among artisanal and small-scale miners: a systematic review and modelling paper
An estimated 44 million artisanal and small-scale miners (ASM), largely based in developing economies, face significant occupational risks for respiratory diseases which have not been reviewed. We therefore aimed to review studies that describe silicosis and tuberculosis prevalence and respirable crystalline silica (RCS) exposures among ASM and use background evidence to better understand the relationship between exposures and disease outcomes. We searched PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus and Embase for studies published before the 24th March 2023.
