接触石棉是主要危险因素;约 80% 的患者有石棉接触史。[8]Cugell DW, Kamp DW. Asbestos and the pleura: a review. Chest. 2004;125:1103-1117.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15006974?tool=bestpractice.com[9]Mossman BT, Kamp DW, Weitzman SA. Mechanisms of carcinogenesis and clinical features of asbestos-associated cancers. Cancer Invest. 1996;14:466-480.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8816862?tool=bestpractice.com[10]Roggli VL, Sharma A, Butnor KJ, et al. Malignant mesothelioma and occupational exposure to asbestos: a clinicopathological correlation of 1445 cases. Ultrastruct Pathol. 2002;26:55-65.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12036093?tool=bestpractice.com截至 2013 年,约有 1.25 亿人在工作中接触过石棉。[11]Gulati M, Redlich CA. Asbestosis and environmental causes of usual interstitial pneumonia. Curr Opin Pulm Med. 2015;21:193-200.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4472384/http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25621562?tool=bestpractice.com此外,5 万人患有恶性间皮瘤,3.4 万人死于该疾病。[12]GBD 2013 Mortality and Causes of Death Collaborators. Global, regional, and national age-sex specific all-cause and cause-specific mortality for 240 causes of death, 1990-2013: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2013. Lancet. 2015;385:117-171.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4340604/http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25530442?tool=bestpractice.com某些石棉亚型(尤其是含铁青石棉和铁石棉)被认为致癌性较高。似乎与剂量反应有关。从接触到发展成恶性肿瘤之间有 20~40 年的潜伏期。[5]Price B, Ware A. Mesothelioma trends in the United States: an update based on Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program data for 1973 through 2003. Am J Epidemiol. 2004;159:107-112.http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/159/2/107http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14718210?tool=bestpractice.com
其他可能的病因包括既往接受过放疗(一种已知致癌因素);遗传易感性,例如 BAP1 基因突变;[13]Carbone M, Yang H, Pass HI, et al. BAP1 and cancer. Nat Rev Cancer. 2013;13:153-159.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3792854/http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23550303?tool=bestpractice.com以及猿猴病毒 40 (SV-40) 感染。[14]Goodman JE, Nascarella MA, Valberg PA. Ionizing radiation: a risk factor for mesothelioma. Cancer Causes Control. 2009;20:1237-1254.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19444627?tool=bestpractice.com[15]Roushdy-Hammady I, Siegel J, Emri S, et al. Genetic-susceptibility factor and malignant mesothelioma in the Cappadocian region of Turkey. Lancet. 2001;357:444-445.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11273069?tool=bestpractice.com[16]Rivera Z, Strianese O, Bertino P, et al. The relationship between simian virus 40 and mesothelioma. Curr Opin Pulm Med. 2008;14:316-321.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18520265?tool=bestpractice.com生殖细胞系中编码 BRCA1 相关蛋白-1 (BAP1) 的基因突变会使其携带者易患间皮瘤。已有报道该人群也会患其他癌症,特别是葡萄膜和皮肤黑色素瘤、基底细胞癌和肾细胞癌。[17]Testa JR, Cheung M, Pei J, et al. Germline BAP1 mutations predispose to malignant mesothelioma. Nat Genet. 2011;43:1022-1025.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3184199/http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21874000?tool=bestpractice.com[18]Bott M, Brevet M, Taylor BS, et al. The nuclear deubiquitinase BAP1 is commonly inactivated by somatic mutations and 3p21.1 losses in malignant pleural mesothelioma. Nat Genet. 2011;43:668-672.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4643098/http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21642991?tool=bestpractice.com也有人提出多种其他因素可能与发展为恶性胸膜间皮瘤有关;但需要进行进一步的流行病学调查以确定其意义。[19]Peterson JT Jr, Greenberg SD, Buffler PA. Non-asbestos-related malignant mesothelioma. A review. Cancer. 1984;54:951-960.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6331632?tool=bestpractice.com