Queensland Education Minister Grace Grace in Queensland ParliamentCredit:AAP
“Final nominations for this group,which will include leading medical experts in field such as thoracic,occupational and environmental medicine and radiology,were received late last month,” Ms Grace said.
“This group will meet next week to consider issues raised in regard to guidance for medical practitioners treating those diagnosed with this terrible disease.”
Silicosis is an irreversible lung disease caused by inhaling silica dust,with many manufactured stone products,such as kitchen and bathroom benchtops,containing up to 90 per cent crystalline silica.
As a result,stonemasons who do not practise appropriate safety measures can very quickly be affected by the debilitating condition,which is often only treatable with a lung transplant.
The LNP used question time to grill Labor on the issue,with Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington asking Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk why her government had not responded to calls from doctors to fund specific treatments for sufferers.
Professor Dan Chambers,a respiratory physician,has called on the state to allocate $2 million for a clinical trial to be urgently set up to develop a treatment for the disease.