Am I at a great risk of developing mesothelioma?

The other day, I was doing electrical work at a an old church. I was rewiring in the ceiling, where there were broken tiles and lots of debris. In my 8 hours of work there, I can say positively that a while bunch of debris landed on my head, face, and body, and I do know that a lot of it got into my mouth. It wasn't until I was about 95% done with the job that a co-worker told me that I should not have been doing that without a respirator, due to the fact that there was 1% asbestos in the tiles. I am very new at the job, and I wasn't aware of any of this. Am I at a high risk of developing lung problems in the future? If so, how long will it be before I notice any effects?

I would imagine a single, relatively short exposure to asbestos shouldn't put you at high risk. My father was an electrician at a steel mill for 40 years with long term , unprotected exposure to asbestos and other contaminants. He developed Mesothelioma and pulmonary fibrosis which eventually contributed to his early death (60 yrs old). He was also a heavy smoker. Don't freak out about it, but you should monitor your exposure and protect yourself whenever you can. Not smoking helps too.

I would say that your risk is probably slightly greater than before. But still not great. In the old days when nobody knew how dangerous asbestos was, people worked with the stuff all their lives, they breathed it in for 30 or 40 years. And of those, maybe 1 or 2 percent got mesothelioma.

So I wouldn't let worrying about it spoil the rest of my life. 8^) And I'd use the respirator from now on.