GROUND ZERO LINK TO LUNG AILMENTS

Study Shows Ground Zero Link to Lung Ailments
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Many Sept. 11 first responders - most of them cops, firemen and construction workers who took ill after working at Ground Zero - suffered lung problems more than five years later, according to a new study.

Experts say findings by Mount Sinai Medical Center's medical monitoring program prove those exposed to toxic dust in the twin towers' collapse suffer persistent illnesses, ranging from asthma to reactive airway disease and shortness of breath. The most reasonable explanation is that there's a subset of people who, for whatever reason, were more sensitive to the stuff that was inhaled.

The study could help experts who have long been struggling to set standards for defining a post-Sept. 11 illness and how long it takes to develop.