NK cell activity in asbestosis.

Natural killer (NK) cell activity was studied in 40 asbestos workers with chest roentgenographic signs of asbestosis and 54 sex- and age-matched healthy controls. NK cell activity in asbestosis was 32.3 +/- 18.2%, significantly higher than that in healthy controls (17.4 +/- 12.2%). We also examined the relationship between NK cell activity and the duration of exposure, and that between NK cell activity and the ILO U/C classification of radiographs. NK cell activity tended to decrease relatively in the presence of lung cancer.