Everyone dies eventually, just a matter of how. Who knows. Bit like a lottery. Yes very likely it was asbestos underlay. Plenty of people have been exposed. Just the unlucky ones impacted. Nothing you can do now so get on and enjoy life while you are healthy. Perhaps donate to and asbestos cure research program.

I’ve done the same and still ok so far. But this is really something that you need to talk to your Dr about. It sounds like a serious concern for you so you should consult a professional.

Mesothelioma is the cancer caused by exposure to asbestos. If you are one of the humans who actually breathed in fibres when dealing with asbestos unprotected, generally there is 40 years between exposure to cancer diagnosis. Consult your doctor with your concerns. Did your asbestos inspectors find any when doing their inspection recently?

An old school now retired plumber told me stories of them cutting through the stuff daily unmasked in their apprenticeships......he's fighting fit in retirement.......

My uncle contracted mesothelioma while working at a highly regarded university in WA as a lecturer. He died in 2012, 71 years of age….. https://thewest.com.au/news/wa/asbestos-payouts-hit-uwa-ng-ya-308123. My dad died in 2008 from a heart attack, after autopsy they discovered mesothelioma was potentially the cause. He was a carpenter from the 1950 and worked constantly with asbestos. A very random disease, which is why any house renovators should be wearing masks….you don’t know what is under and behind the walls and floors you are ripping apart.

"A very random disease, which is why any house renovators should be wearing masks….you don’t know"

Dreamer is right.

I've personally known or known of, some tradies who must have had many exposures over the years without consequence, but also other tradies and people who did DIY at some stage and even people with no awareness of having done anything, and they developed health problems probably or possibly linked to asbestos.

Mesothelioma is the well-publicised condition which is very linked to asbestos exposure, but there are other conditions which asbestos can contribute to..

Do what you can to avoid exposures going forward, because each one adds to the gamble. If you're a smoker you should give that up, because I recall reading that amongst asbestos workers, those who smoked had an even higher rate, which makes sense, it's like a risk on top of a risk, so like a cumulative effect.

for any diy renos safest to always get aesbestos test before starting anything and contract professional removal if present…it’s totally fine undisturbed…..but when working in any dusty environments always advisable to mask up to minimise risk