[Pleural mesotheliomas in the Po River valley near Pavia; mortality, incidence and the correlations with an asbestos cement plant].

A spatial cluster of pleural mesothelioma cases was detected in Broni, in the Province of Pavia (northwestern Italy). Eighteen deaths due to malignant pleural neoplasms were observed in the years 1980-87 (SMR: 556; 95% confidence interval: 329-878) and the incidence of pleural mesothelioma in 1980-89 was 9.1 cases per 100,000 person-years among men and 4.3 cases among women. These findings are discussed with reference to the presence in Broni of a plant manufacturing asbestos cement products.