A tradesman diagnosed with silicosis believes a new UK crackdown on silica dust does not go far enough – and called for the kitchen stone blamed for his lung disease to be banned completely.
Ryan Fenton, 50, is one of more than 50 UK workers diagnosed with the incurable lung disease after cutting quartz – known as engineered stone – kitchen worktops.
After suffering a mini-stroke in 2022, further tests at London’s Royal Brompton Hospital led to his diagnosis with silicosis, an entirely preventable disease hitting a growing number of young stonemasons.
Shorts
Specialists told the father-of-two his condition was related to dust exposure from cutting engineered stone, a material which has become hugely popular in home renovations and costs a fraction of the price of natural stone like granite or marble.
