Yourlawyer.com (Mesothelioma News)

First Mesothelioma Case of 2006 Filed in Madison County

Mon, 08 Jan 2007 00:00:00 -0800

A woman diagnosed with mesothelioma filed a lawsuit against 104 defendants in Madison County Circuit Court Jan. 3. The woman claims she was exposed to asbestos from her father’s clothing. Her father was employed as a carpenter, maintenance worker and stationary engineer at various locations across the country. The woman was diagnosed with mesothelioma on August 31, 2006.

The lawsuit states that, “Dust created by working with and around asbestos and asbestos-containing products would permeate the person and clothing of the plaintiff’s father,” “This dust contained asbestos fiber.” The suit alleges that defendants failed to require and advise their employees of hygiene practices designed to reduce or prevent carrying asbestos fibers home.

“It was foreseeable to a reasonable person/entity in the respective positions of defendants, that said documents and information constituted evidence, which was material to potential civil litigation-namely asbestos litigation,” the complaint states.

She claims that as a result of each defendant breaching its duty to preserve material evidence by destroying documents and information she has been prejudiced and impaired in proving claims against all potential parties.

“Plaintiff has been caused to suffer damages in the form of impaired ability to recover against defendants and lost or reduced compensation from other potentially liable parties in this litigation,” the complaint states.

“An award of punitive damages is appropriate and necessary in order to punish defendants for their willful, wanton, intentional and/or reckless misconduct and to deter defendants and others from engaging in like misconduct in the future.”

Jury awards shipyard worker's widow $10M

Thu, 27 Jul 2006 00:00:00 -0700

A jury awarded $10.4 million to the widow of a former shipyard worker who died of lung cancer after four years of working with materials that contained asbestos.

The Newport News Circuit Court verdict in Wanda Jones' wrongful death lawsuit against three companies that manufactured the materials was handed down Wednesday, the first anniversary of the death of 60-year-old Buddy Jones.

"It's a mixed day," Wanda Jones said. "At least there's been some justice and recognition for what he went through, certainly through no fault of his own. He just went to work and did what he was trained to do on the job."

Her attorney, Robert Hatten, called the verdict a landmark because one-third of the judgment will come from John Crane Inc., which has refused to settle other asbestos cases.

"A lot of these companies now accept responsibility and settle these cases regularly," said the palntiff's attorney, who has represented thousands of shipyard workers exposed to asbestos. "I hope this verdict will make companies like John Crane change their corporate attitude."

Attorneys for John Crane, a unit of British manufacturer Smiths Group PLC, said the company's products could not have harmed workers.

"We defend cases because we believe in the safety of the product," attorney Ed Mueller said. "If you were sitting here right now, I'd take a piece out and put it around my neck and wear it home."

Mueller said the company, which stopped making products with asbestos in the 1980s, will appeal the verdict.

The judgment is split with two other companies: Denver's Johns Manville Corp., a unit of billionaire investor Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. that makes roofing, insulation and other industrial materials; and Garlock Sealing Technologies, a Palmyra, N.Y., unit of EnPro Industries Inc. in Charlotte, N.C.

Buddy Jones was diagnosed with mesothelioma, a cancer caused almost exclusively by asbestos. Because the cancer can lie dormant for 20 to 50 years, some older shipyard workers are just realizing the effects of their asbestos exposure.

Dr. John C. Maddox testified at the three-week trial that he has seen about 500 mesothelioma patients in his practice at Riverside Regional Medical Center.

Jones spent four years sealing pumps and making gaskets at Newport News Shipbuilding now Northrop Grumman Newport News in the 1960s before returning to college and becoming a computer programmer in Richmond. When he suddenly got sick in late 2004, his doctor thought it was pneumonia. Then he found the tumors in Jones' lungs. Jones died within a year.

The shipyard stopped using products containing asbestos the mid 1980s.

Four asbestos lawsuits filed in Kanawha Circuit

Fri, 30 Jun 2006 00:00:00 -0700

Two attorneys each filed two asbestos lawsuits in Kanawha Circuit Court last week.

One lawyer filed his lawsuits June 22 on behalf of Albert and Chestene Miller and David Murray.

The Millers name 107 defendants in their lawsuits. Albert Miller was a laborer with the United Steel Workers Association Local 721, working at an industrial site in Kenova that was "owned and operated by various entities including U.S. Steel Chemical, Aristech and Novamont Chemical.

Miller, of Proctorville, Ohio, has mesothelioma, a lung disease related to asbestos exposure. His wife is suing for loss of consortium.

They are seeking compensatory and punitive damages, as is Murray.

Murray, 59, was the son of James Murray, who worked at a Wheeling Pittsburg Steel plant in Benwood. David Murray says he was exposed to asbestos fibers that his father brought home on his clothes and has asbestosis and mesothelioma.

Murray, of Bellaire, Ohio, names 108 defendants.

The other lawyer is representing Walter and Carolyn Donat and Paul and Mildred Hunt. Their lawsuits were filed jointly and name 42 defendants.

It says the plaintiffs worked as laborers and welders from 1969-1996 and were frequently exposed to asbestos fibers.

Both wives are suing for loss of consortium. Both cases seek compensatory and punitive damages.

Visiting judges will be assigned the cases.

Deadly Risks Associated with Asbestos Have Failed to Stop Its Use in U.S. and Around the World

Wed, 08 Feb 2006 00:00:00 -0800

Currently, the U.S. Senate is debating a bill (S.852) that would establish a 30-year, $140 billion asbestos victims’ compensation trust fund that, in essence, would eliminate asbestos lawsuits and create a 30-year fund financed by companies facing litigation and their insurers. Victims would lose their right to sue for compensation and would be required to go to the fund for relief.

In addition, personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits have already resulted in the payout of billions of dollars in damages in the U.S., asbestos manufacturers have sought bankruptcy protection, and significant settlements have been announced in other countries to resolve similar liability claims.

Thus, there is no disagreement or dispute that asbestos is a major health threat with long-term life-threatening implications to vast numbers of people worldwide.

In light of this indisputable fact it would be reasonable to assume that the U.S. and the rest of the world would have already banned the further use of asbestos or, at the very least, planned for its ultimate removal from the market. Amazingly, neither is the case.

As reported in the February edition of CancerWire, asbestos is still being widely used in the U.S. in existing structures as well as new applications.

The report is based on a recent interview with Linda Reinstein of the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO), an organization she co-founded after her husband was diagnosed with mesothelioma.

ADAO is now an international organization that offers support, resources, and education for patients and caregivers affected by asbestos.

As pointed out by Reinstein: “Asbestos can cause or contribute to cancers such as mesothelioma, lung, larynx, esophageal, and stomach cancer and many non-malignant diseases such as asbestosis and chronic pulmonary respiratory disease. Ten thousand lives are lost in the U.S. every year to all asbestos-related disease. Each case is incurable and often deadly and every case could have been prevented because the dangers of this mineral were known in the early 1900's.”

As significant as the death toll and negative health effects are, they may be only a fraction of the actual problem for a number of reasons. These include:

Asbestos-related diseases are often difficult to diagnose in a way that conclusive links the illness to the mineral;

Many people who die of cardiac arrest or pneumonia are never diagnosed with the underlying asbestos-related diseases that caused their medical problems in the first place; and

A vast number of people are (or have been) exposed to asbestos without even being aware of it this happens in three ways: (1) the asbestos is present in man-made products the person is exposed too but unaware of; (2) the person is exposed to a natural asbestos source; or (3) second-hand asbestos exposure to the clothing or other possessions belonging to someone who works with or is directly exposed to asbestos or asbestos products.

Reinstein also observes that, while in 1989, the EPA announced an asbestos ban and phase out, only to have the ban overturned by a U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in 1990. “So we don't have an actual ban on asbestos, but instead a regulation to reduce exposure.”

There is also the paradox that exists between often repeated statement by the EPA that there is no safe level of asbestos exposure and the rules allowing asbestos in certain concentrations in particular environments (which are virtually impossible to monitor on a continuing basis especially if a person is unaware of the presence of asbestos - OSHA regulations state an employee cannot be exposed to more than 0.1 asbestos fibers per cubic centimeter of air for an average eight hour work day).

Aside from the asbestos presence in new products and materials, an estimated 30 million offices, homes, and schools are currently contaminated with the mineral. Any construction, demolition, or repair, of these older structures, therefore, can lead to asbestos exposure, just as what happened at the World Trade Center on 9/11.

“One life lost to an asbestos related disease is tragic; hundreds of thousands of lives lost is unconscionable. While we can't reclaim the lives of our loved ones, we can make the world a better place for those who come after us.” Reinstein concluded.

In December 2005, major settlements of asbestos-related death and injury claims were announced in Japan and Australia.
Simply stated, asbestos is as deadly a natural time-bomb as the world has ever known. Yet, it continues to be mined and exported from advanced countries like Canada and Russia to developing nations where more death and disease will eventually follow.

Asbestos producing countries have repeatedly blocked the addition of chrysotile (white) asbestos to the UN list of highly dangerous substances that cannot be exported to developing countries without their knowledge and agreement.

In September 2004, "prior informed consent" (PIC) listing of chrysotile was blocked at the Rotterdam convention meeting in Geneva primarily through the efforts of Canada and Russia.

Canada is the world's second-largest exporter of asbestos after Russia.

Numerous vocal critics of Canada's policy on asbestos call the country’s actions nothing more than exporting death to protect the profits of a handful of companies and the jobs of 1,600 miners.

"What's the difference between land mines and asbestos?" asks Dr. Barry Castleman, author of a respected book on the danger of asbestos. "A key difference, of course, is that Canada doesn't export land mines."

In countries like India where the exported asbestos winds up, unprotected workers slash open bags of asbestos fibers in order to mix it with cement. These workers have no choice but to work within swirling clouds of carcinogenic fibers.

In Britain, the Cancer Research Campaign has stated that its study into the European asbestos-linked cancer epidemic should sound alarm bells everywhere, "particularly in the developing world where uncontrolled asbestos is still very common," said CRC director Gordon McVie.
The asbestos industry, however, profits greatly from exporting to developing nations with seven of Canada's top 10 markets being so-called Third World countries.

To preserve that profitability, the Canadian government, the asbestos industry and lobby groups are doing there best to put a good face on the asbestos industry. Both diplomats and journalists are wined and dined and sent on first-class trips as part of this effort.

Philip Landrigan, of New York's Mount Sinai School of Medicine - the center that first linked cancer to asbestos in the 1960s says the asbestos lobby's claim that the fiber is safe is "absolutely untrue."

"Asbestos remains an important cause of human illness," says Landrigan. "All forms of asbestos are carcinogenic, and that includes Canadian chrysotile."

Julian Peto, head of epidemiology at the University of London, who wrote the study on the Euro-epidemic, says there's no safe way to use asbestos in developed nations. In developing nations, where there is little money for protective clothing and ventilation systems, workers are being poisoned by the thousands.

"There is no way you can control it in Britain, let alone the third world," Peto says.

Ten European Union members have banned asbestos. France, which banned it in 1997 for health reasons, now faces a Canadian challenge at the WTO. Canada argues the ban violates Canada's rights under international trade rules.

In a speech before an audience of occupational health professionals from around the world who had gathered in Italy, Dr. Joseph LeDou of the University of California's Medical School attacked Canada's asbestos-promoting efforts.

LeDou said Canada was engaged in "the exploitation of ignorance and poverty" in Asia, Africa, and Latin America." He accused Canadian policy makers of "setting up the developing world "for an epidemic of asbestos-related disease, the costs of which will fall on countries that can ill afford it."

Thus, as the asbestos “problem” becomes more acute, public awareness of the looming epidemic and its origins takes on even greater urgency.

One of the more severe health risks associated with asbestos is a chronic, non-cancerous respiratory disease called asbestosis. Asbestosis occurs when asbestos fibers are inhaled into the lungs causing lung tissues to become aggravated and scarred.

Some symptoms of asbestosis include shortness of breath and a dry, wheezing sound made by the lungs upon inhalation. Some of them more serious risks include cardiac failure which occurs primarily in advanced stages of asbestosis.

Unfortunately there is currently no effective treatment for asbestosis and it can therefore be completely disabling and even fatal.

Mesothelioma is another significant and widespread health risk associated with asbestos exposure and unlike asbestosis, it can affect individuals who are not directly exposed to asbestos but either live with someone who is an asbestos worker or live near asbestos mining areas or other places where the substance is widely used. Almost all cases of mesothelioma are directly attributable to asbestos exposure.

Mesothelioma is a rare and quite deadly form of cancer that occurs when tumors form on the membranes surrounding the lungs, chest, abdomen, and sometimes heart. Symptoms of mesothelioma may not appear until 30 to 50 years following exposure to asbestos

Thus, there is the expectation that there will be a significant increase in the number of mesothelioma cases in the coming decades both in the U.S. and in all of the developing nations that are currently importing asbestos fibers for industrial use.

While asbestosis and mesothelioma are the most common health risks associated with asbestos exposure, lung cancer has also been linked to asbestos. In fact, lung cancer is responsible for the largest number of deaths related to asbestos exposure. Individuals who have been exposed to other carcinogens, such as cigarette smoke, are at an increased risk for developing lung cancer than people who have only been exposed to asbestos.

A study from the University of Montana found that people exposed to high levels of asbestos may face a greater risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, and other autoimmune diseases

Another study, published in the May 2005 issue of the American Journal of Industrial Medicine found a significant number of cases of mesothelioma in family members of asbestos workers.

According to the findings of Dr. Albert Miller of St. Vincent Catholic Medical Center in New York, the cancer, which is mainly caused by exposure to airborne particles of asbestos, most often affects the wives and daughters of asbestos workers and may take over 40 years to develop. A few cases involving sons and other relatives were also found, however.

The study concluded that exposure to particles of asbestos carried home on workers’ clothing and bodies was directly linked to 32 cases of mesothelioma diagnosed in family members since 1990.

About 90% of mesotheliomas in men have been attributed to asbestos because of their direct exposure to the material at work. In cases involving women, however, linking the disease to asbestos has proven to be more difficult.

Based upon the study results, Dr. Miller theorizes that many of these unexplained cases in women may be related to having lived with an asbestos-exposed worker at some point in their lives.

Another study published in the second issue of the October 2005 of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine of the American Thoracic Society, stated that Californians who live near naturally occurring asbestos sources and who are exposed to low levels of the mineral are at increased risk for developing mesothelioma.

Dr. Marc B. Schenker, of the Division of Environmental and Occupational Health, at the University of California, Davis, and four associates, examined 2,908 malignant mesothelioma cases reported from 1988 to 1997. Over 50% of the men and 58% of the women, all of whom were listed in the California Cancer Registry, either had no or little exposure to occupational asbestos at the workplace.

According to the study authors, California has more naturally occurring asbestos source rocks than any other state in the U.S. Previous studies all point to occupational exposure to asbestos as the cause of mesothelioma. But population-based studies, Dr Schenker says, have almost all showed some examples of mesothelioma cases where there was no exposure at work. The new study reveals that the living environment could actually be the culprit in such cases.

With respect to the proposed creation of a fund that would eliminate asbestos lawsuits, ADAO has already mounted a vocal campaign against the passage of the asbestos bill.

ADAO argues that the bill does not adequately protect the rights of asbestos victims and hopes that Senate does not support what he calls “this corporate bailout bill.”

ADAO, however, has serious problems with the proposed fund including outdated and incorrect medical criteria with respect to the symptoms, diagnosis, and severity of asbestos related diseases, inordinate compensation delays, and improper eligibility standards, inadequate funding for research, education, prevention, and outreach, and possible insolvency long before all present and future victims can access it.

While the group is not opposed to the idea of a trust fund, it would much rather see one that is fundamentally fair, adequately funded, free of bureaucratic delays, and guaranteed to be around long enough to ensure all victims would be properly compensated. ADAO also advocates giving the victims the right to choose between compensation from the fund or a trial.

Meanwhile, Senate opponents of the bill see potential dilemmas with the fund’s solvency and with the allocation of expenses between the participating companies and insurers.

Lawsuits continue to surface regarding asbestos exposure and asbestos related illnesses. At the moment, studies continue to persist in an effort to learn more about how asbestos affects people who are directly exposed to the substance as well as individuals who experience second-hand exposure.

In the 1970’s government regulations stopped the widespread and common use of asbestos. Today, however, it is still used under heavy regulation. Asbestos is still used in more than 3,000 products such as brake linings, engine gaskets, and roof coatings. Older buildings still contain asbestos as it was originally thought of as an excellent insulating material.

In many of those older buildings (such as schools), however, years of deterioration, leaks, careless alterations, and improper asbestos abatement operations have all played a role in producing airborne asbestos fibers.

The number of asbestos-related deaths continues to climb. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that 77 people died from asbestos related illnesses in 1968 while 1,493 people died from asbestos in 2000.

Settlement reached in W.Va. asbestos suit

Tue, 22 Nov 2005 00:00:00 -0800

West Virginia University has reached a settlement in a class-action lawsuit affecting up to 5,600 former and current employees who may have been exposed to asbestos, the school announced Tuesday.

As part of the proposed settlement, WVU will institute and pay for a medical surveillance program to be conducted for 20 years. WVU also agreed to pay $1 million to cover potential claims and attorney fees.

A judge must approve the agreement before it becomes final. A hearing is scheduled for Dec. 22.

University employees sued in 2000 and sought medical monitoring for potential asbestos-related health problems as a result of working in university buildings containing asbestos insulation.

The workers, including professors, custodians, secretaries and other staff, alleged that asbestos in campus buildings put them at an increased risk of cancer.

The university said in a statement that the agreement had been reached in the "spirit of compromise."

"WVU maintains that all standard, recognized practices for asbestos removal have been followed over the years, and that the general population of employees, through routine monitoring of buildings and air samplings, remain safe from any harmful effects of asbestos-containing materials," the university said.

Until the 1970s, asbestos was universally prized for its resistance to fire and heat. Since then, the medical community has warned that asbestos fibers, when inhaled, can cause such illnesses as mesothelioma, a rare and inoperable form of lung cancer. It also causes asbestosis, an irreversible scarring of the lungs, and other lung ailments.

Exposure to Asbestos from Rocks Can Cause Malignant Mesothelioma

Mon, 17 Oct 2005 00:00:00 -0700

A new study published in the October 2005 American Thoracic Society’s American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine has found that Californians who live close to naturally occurring asbestos sources are at an increased risk for developing malignant mesothelioma.

Malignant mesothelioma is a cancer of the membrane covering the lung. The study’s authors, Marc B. Schenker, M.D., from the University of California, Davis, and four of his associates, investigated 2,908 malignant mesothelioma cases reported in California between 1988 to 1997. Over half of the patients either had no or low occupational exposure to asbestos. Exposure to asbestos fibers is the only known cause for malignant mesothelioma.

Dr. Schenker said that while studies have confirmed the link between mesothelioma and occupational exposure to asbestos, almost all population-based studies have found that many mesothelioma cases have no known occupational exposure to asbestos.

The research showed that people who lived closer to an asbestos source had a greater risk of developing mesothelioma, and that the chance decreased as the distance from exposure increased. According to the study, the odds of developing mesothelioma decreased 6.3 percent for every 10 kilometers farther from the asbestos source.

Per the authors, California has more naturally occurring asbestos source rocks than any other state in the U.S..

In an editorial in the same issue, Marcel Goldberg, M.D., Ph.D. and Daniele Luce, Ph.D., of the Institut National de la Sante et de la Recherche Medicale in Saint Maurice, France, wrote “while exposure in environmental settings is generally much lower than in occupational circumstances, the levels may not be negligible.”

They add that in studies in which elevated risk of mesothelioma was demonstrated, people typically lived in close vicinity of naturally occurring asbestos sources. “It is thus likely that lifelong cumulative exposure may have been as high (if not higher) as in some occupational settings.”

FIVE-YEAR STUDY SUGGESTS VITAMIN E-RELATED COMPOUND MAY KILL CANCER CELLS CAUSED BY ASBESTOS RELATED MESOTHELIOMA

Sun, 05 Jun 2005 00:00:00 -0700

Mesothelioma is a highly aggressive cancer found in the lining of the chest, the abdominal cavity, and area around the heart.

It is primarily caused by exposure to airborne asbestos particles and has a latency period of between 30 and 40 years (some experts put the latency period at up to 50 years). This form of cancer, for which there is currently no cure, is particularly lethal and resistant to all conventional therapies.

A five-year animal (mouse) study by researchers from several countries, however, has found that a vitamin E-related compound known as alpha-TOS may kill mesothelioma cells. The compound also halted the growth of mesothelioma tumors and showed promise with respect to suppressing tumors associated with melanoma and breast, lung, and colon cancer.

Dr. Jiri Neuzil of Griffith University (Gold Coast), who headed the study, hopes to begin human trials within two years. Although Dr. Neuzil is encouraged by the results, he is cautiously optimistic since "in the past many experiments showing promise in mice have completely failed in humans." One very positive finding in this study was that alpha-TOS selectively pursued mesothelioma cells and destroyed them while causing little, if any damage to normal cells.

Although alpha-TOS is already taken orally by many people as a health supplement, it loses its cancer fighting quality when it is converted to vitamin E by the digestive system. Dr. Neuzil made a cynical observation, however, when he stated that the pharmaceutical industry might not take on alpha-TOS as a cancer cure because the compound cannot be patented.

FIRST BLOOD TEST FOR MESOTHELIOMA IS ANNOUNCED BUT, WHO GETS CREDIT FOR IT?

Wed, 01 Jun 2005 00:00:00 -0700

Although it seems clear that the first blood test for mesothelioma has been developed, there seems to some conflict as to who actually gets credit for this significant medical breakthrough. Some news sources attribute the test known as MESOMARK to Australian researchers headed by Professor Bruce Robinson of the University of Western Australia. Others credit the very same test to Fujirebio Diagnostics, Inc. (FJI) of Tokyo, Japan, which announced the filing of an application for clearance to the FDA.

The test works by identifying serum tumor markers called soluble mesothelin-related peptides (SMRP) which are proteins released into the blood by malignant mesothelioma cells. Mesothelioma is a highly aggressive cancer found in the lining of the chest, the abdominal cavity, and area around the heart. It is primarily caused by exposure to airborne asbestos particles and has a latency period of between 30 and 40 years. As we reported yesterday, secondhand exposure of family members to asbestos particles on the clothing and bodies of those who worked with the material has also been shown to cause mesothelioma up to 40 years after the exposure.

Mesothelioma Lawyer Injury Attorney

Wed, 01 Jun 2005 00:00:00 -0700

Mesothelioma Lawyers

Keywords: Mesothelioma | Lawyer | Injury | Attorney |

The lawyers and attorneys at our firm are offering free consultations to victims of mesothelioma and their families. Mesothelioma is a type of cancer that is almost always caused by asbestos exposure. The victims of this usually fatal disease face a great deal of pain and suffering, as well as lost wages and astronomical medical bills. If you or a loved one suffers from this horrible disorder, we urge you to contact one of our mesothelioma lawyers as soon as possible to protect your legal rights.

Mesothelioma affects the protective lining of the internal organs, which is known as the mesothelium. Because asbestos fibers can be inhaled, mesothelioma almost always attacks the pleura (outer lining of the lungs and internal chest wall), but it may also occur in other areas of the body such as the peritoneum (the lining of the abdominal cavity) and the pericardium (a sac that surrounds the heart).

Our mesothelioma lawyers know the devastating toll this disease - physically, emotionally and financially - takes on victims and their families. While no amount of money can make up for the pain caused by mesothelioma, fair compensation can be a great comfort to people who often face financial uncertainty following a mesothelioma diagnosis.

Asbestos and Mesothelioma

Millions of people in the U.S. have been exposed to asbestos, and it is estimated that approximately 3,000 people are diagnosed with mesothelioma each year. Mesothelioma is usually diagnosed in people who have had occupational exposure to asbestos. However, people exposed to asbestos dust and fiber in other ways, such as by washing the clothes of a family member who worked with asbestos, have also developed the disease. Regardless of the avenue of asbestos exposure, our mesothelioma lawyers will work hard to make sure that our clients receive the compensation they deserve.

Mesothelioma risk is believed to be increased in people who are exposed to high levels of asbestos, in people who are exposed to asbestos over a long period of time and in people exposed to asbestos at a young age. There are currently about 3,000 new cases of mesothelioma diagnosed per year, mostly in men over the age of 40. It is estimated that there will be about 250,000 cases of mesothelioma before 2020.

When asbestos is broken up, such as during the mining process or when removing asbestos insulation, dust may be created. If the dust is inhaled or swallowed, the asbestos fibers may settle in the lungs or other organs, where they can cause irritation that may lead to mesothelioma, though how exactly this happens isn't understood. While the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) long ago banned new uses of asbestos, existing asbestos continues to pose a significant danger, as it is still found in older buildings, including homes and schools.

Asbestos was first linked to mesothelioma in the 1930s. But for decades, the industry covered up the truth, even going so far as to fund studies that purported to show no association between the toxin and the disease. For instance, in 1958, the Quebec Asbestos Mining Association published a study that supposedly concluded that asbestos miners did not suffer from higher incidence of lung cancer than the general population. But it is now known that an unpublished version of the study, concealed by the asbestos industry, actually proved the opposite was true.

In their investigation of the industry, our mesothelioma lawyers have uncovered many instances where the true dangers of asbestos were covered up. Because of this deception, asbestos continues to sicken and kill those exposed to it. Our mesothelioma lawyers are committed to making sure that manufacturers are held accountable for these illnesses and deaths.

Mesothelioma Symptoms

Symptoms of mesothelioma may not appear until 20 to 50 years after exposure to asbestos. Shortness of breath, cough, and pain in the chest due to an accumulation of fluid in the pleural space are often symptoms of pleural mesothelioma. Some patients, however, may show no symptoms at all. Peritoneal mesothelioma symptoms include pain or swelling in the abdomen, nausea, weight loss, bowel obstruction, anemia or swollen feet. Unfortunately, tumors that affect the abdominal cavity often do not cause symptoms until they are at a late stage.

In severe cases, a mesothelioma victim may have many tumor masses. The individual may develop a collapsed lung. The disease may metastasize, or spread, to other parts of the body. Mesothelioma is described as localized if the cancer is found only on the membrane surface where it originated. It is classified as advanced if it has spread beyond the original membrane surface to other parts of the body, such as the lymph nodes, lungs, chest wall, or abdominal organs.

Mesothelioma Treatment

While there is no known cure for mesothelioma, there are treatments that can extend a victim's life, or ease their symptoms, Some of the treatments currently available include:

Surgery: Certain surgical procedures alleviate symptoms or slow the progression of mesothelioma. Surgery may be performed in tandem with other treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation.

Chemotherapy: Chemotherapy uses certain chemical agents or drugs that are specifically destructive to malignant tissues and cells. Doctors may recommend single agent chemotherapy or a combination chemotherapy treatment. While it is not a cure for mesothelioma, chemotherapy treatment may slow the progression of the cancer.

Radiation: Radiation therapy is an intense X-ray treatment to damage or kill cancer cells. Although not a cure for mesothelioma, radiation therapy nonetheless may be used at different stages of the disease to slow its growth.

Even with the best treatment, mesothelioma is usually fatal. Mesothelioma patients have a median survival time of 6 - 12 months after presentation^.If the cancer is found early, approximately 50% of the patients survive 2 years and approximately 20% survive 5 years.

Legal Help for Victims of Mesothelioma

The mesothelioma lawyers at our firm have represented hundreds of mesothelioma victims and their families with dignity and compassion. If you or someone you love was exposed to asbestos and developed mesothelioma, you have valuable legal rights. Please fill out our online form, or call 1-800 LAW INFO (1-800-529-4636) to speak with one of the experienced mesothelioma lawyers at our firm.