When Les Morris worked as a carpenter cutting up building materials in the 1970s with South Sydney council, he knew nothing about the danger of asbestos.

"I would be covered in it," Mr Morris said.

"I couldn't see anything. I had to walk out of the room to let the dust settle."

As a result of his exposure 40 years ago, Mr Morris was diagnosed with mesothelioma in March at the age of 65.

Les Morris says more advertising about the risks of asbestos should be placed in hardware stores. ( Supplied: Sandra Morris )

His symptoms started with a persistent cough and chest pains, which he and his wife Sandra thought might have been due to a broken rib.

They were shocked when the results came back with a diagnosis of sarcomatoid mesothelioma — the most aggressive form of the cancer, which is resistant to chemotherapy.

He was told treatment might only extend his life by 12 months, although Mr Morris said he might get more time now that he was on an immunotherapy drug.

His life now revolves around medication, blood tests and scans.

"I've got a granddaughter who I won't see grow up," Mr Morris said through tears.

"That's devastating."

More women and young people

The prime group of patients being diagnosed with the cancer today were exposed in the 1970s and 1980s, when there was no education about the risks of asbestos.

While men are four times more likely than women to suffer from the disease, more women are being diagnosed, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) reported.

The majority of people diagnosed worked in trade and manufacturing, but now there is an increasing number of people with mesothelioma caused by asbestos exposure outside of the workplace.

Rod Smith from the Bernie Banton Foundation, which supports families affected by mesothelioma, lost his wife Julie to the disease in 2008.

Rod Smith and Karen Banton have both lost partners to mesothelioma. ( Facebook: Bernie Banton Foundation )

She had been exposed to asbestos as a child when her father would come home with traces of the dust on his work overalls.

Mr Smith himself came in contact with asbestos when he worked as a painter in his early 20s.

"It's always at the back of my mind but there's nothing I can do," he said.

"Sometimes I think I'm at death when things aren't going well health-wise and I just annoy the specialists about checking it."

'Deadly' renovation TV shows

Mr Smith said education was key to preventing and managing asbestos exposure, and not just during Asbestos Awareness Week which takes place in the last week of November each year.

He fears the popularity of home renovation television shows are putting those inspired to undertake DIY jobs at risk and could bring a new wave of mesothelioma cases in years to come.

"They are deadly," Mr Smith said of the renovation shows.

"If we had our way, they would run warning banners at the bottom and during the program."

Houses built before the 1990s will likely have asbestos, Rod Smith says. ( Stateline )

Mr Smith said it was difficult to encourage people to be concerned about a health issue that might not surface for 20 or 30 years.

Because of that, the success of current awareness campaigns also can't be measured for another couple of decades.

"I can't see any decrease for at least another 20 years, and that might not even happen," Mr Smith said.

"The idea that we can get rid of asbestos-related disease in this century is really quite farcical because we still have people getting exposed."

Mr Morris agreed and said more advertising about the risks of asbestos should be placed in hardware stores and in conjunction with the TV shows.

"I wouldn't know about it unless I had the disease," he said.

"They have signs for everything else, but not this. This is a killer."

Mr Smith advised people to get their houses assessed by an asbestos specialist before undertaking renovation work.

What is mesothelioma? Malignant mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer that's associated with breathing in asbestos fibres.

Malignant mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer that's associated with breathing in asbestos fibres. It affects the mesothelium, a lining that protects most internal organs.

It affects the mesothelium, a lining that protects most internal organs. The cancer can develop 20 to 60 years after the first exposure to asbestos.

The cancer can develop 20 to 60 years after the first exposure to asbestos. From 1982 to 2017, the number of new cases each year increased for men (135 to 592) and women (22 to 118).

From 1982 to 2017, the number of new cases each year increased for men (135 to 592) and women (22 to 118). Asbestos was used in the construction industry and in equipment in ships, trains and cars until it was banned in 2004. Source: Bernie Banton Foundation / AIHW

Cases still increasing

Australia has one of the highest incidences of mesothelioma in the world, where there are two cases diagnosed every day.

The latest report by the AIHW, which oversees the Australian Mesothelioma Registry, showed there were 710 diagnoses last year.

But that number is expected to rise as more cases are registered for that year.

In 2016, there were 757 cases reported and 651 people died from the disease.

Western Australia has the highest rate of mesothelioma, followed by Queensland and New South Wales; Tasmania has the lowest.

Last week, NSW Parliament passed new asbestos waste laws that increased penalties for illegally disposing, recycling or reusing asbestos waste.

Corporations can now be fined up to $2 million and individuals $500,000 for waste offences.