Asbestos is dangerous when the asbestos fibres are released into the air from damaged materials or when the materials are moved, sawn, cut, broken or abraded. The asbestos fibres are so tiny they pass deep into the lungs and your natural defences are unable to remove the fibres from the lungs. They build up in the lungs and your body’s immune system attacking the fibres causes damage and scarring to the delicate lung tissue. Over time this leads to asbestos related diseases such as asbestos, lung cancer and the asbestos specific cancer of the lung lining mesothelioma.