I am 25. I had been experiencing severe shortness if breath and chest pain. I have been diagnosed as having COPD. My function level is 40 %. I have a history of mild asthma. I never really had any asthma attacks and I never needed to go to the ER for asthma problems. I didn't use a daily inhaler, just one when I got a cold. About 3 years ago, I was exposed at work to an extremely high concentration of cement dust and passed out. I recently learned that cement dust has silica and can cause lung problems. I was fine before that but have been having shortness of breath starting a few months after that incident and it has gotten progressively worse to where I can't even tie my shoe without feeling out of breath. I have told about a dozen times since the incident that I had bronchitis or pneumonia and was prescribed meds but the symptoms persisted. I cough quite a bit now and my cough brings up mucous. Could the COPD have been caused by the silica exposure or is it the normal progression for someone with asthma?