About Mesothelioma Asbestos

Mesothelioma was first recorded by the World Health Organization in 1994, but extensive demographic pictures just recently have emerged about the deadly disease.  And to no one’s surprise, the incidence of this asbestos-related cancer has increased and the age-adjusted mortality rate more than doubled during a 15-year study period.

According to a recent WHO bulletin, 92,253 deaths from mesothelioma were reported by more than 80 countries between 1994 and 2008.  (Sadly, this number only included mesothelioma deaths, and did not account for victims of other asbestos-related diseases such as asbestosis or lung cancer.)  Most mesothelioma deaths occurred in the United States and in the western and northern regions of Europe, but more generally, deaths occurred in countries with high incomes.  The 10 countries with the highest incidence of mesothelioma deaths are in the industrialized world, including Japan and South Africa.  Not surprisingly, these countries also had high cumulative asbestos use.  South Africa, for example, was once a major producer of asbestos and was the site of the first diagnosed mesothelioma cluster.  The incidence of mesothelioma in countries with high incomes was 16 times the rate of incidence in low-income countries.

Some other disturbing facts from the WHO bulletin:

·The age-adjusted mortality rate increased by 5.37 percent per year during the study period

·The mean age at death was 70

·The ratio of male to female deaths was 3.6 to 1

·Less than 12 percent of all deaths occurred in middle- and low-income countries

As troubling as these numbers are, the incidence and mortality rates are probably much worse than reported.  The study was not able to draw data from China, India, the Russian Federation, Kazakhstan or Thailand — all countries that have produced and consumed asbestos at high levels over a number of years.

Given mesothelioma’s long latency period – it sometimes takes 10-50 years after exposure for symptoms to surface — it’s expected that these numbers will only continue to rise until asbestos production and usage is banned.

Perhaps the most shocking fact of all is that this deadly material is still legal in the U.S.

It’s time for federal, state and local governments to understand the urgency of the spreading disease, the lack of any safe level of exposure to asbestos, and its lack of discrimination by age, gender or race of victim.

It’s time to join our fight.

Asbestos

It’s no secret nowadays that those who have spent their lives working in shipyards or factories run an increased risk of eventually developing an illness such as asbestosis or mesothelioma.

However, a recent story out of Scotland regarding a profession that is far less commonly associated with asbestos illnesses may be the cause of one man’s mesothelioma death.

According to the Daily Record, 79-year-old Scottish artist James Howie passed away earlier this month after having been diagnosed with both mesothelioma and a pulmonary embolism. When looking for what caused Howie to inhale the dangerous asbestos fibers that usually cause mesothelioma, his wife Joyce told the paper that she suspected that sanding methods he used on paint for his pieces may have been what released the fibers into the air.

“He used to do layer upon layer of paint, always scraping, sanding, cutting it back to paint over it again and again in order to create a certain effect,” she said. “He would keep repeating this process until it resulted in the thing he was looking for.”

She added that, at the time of the article’s publishing, there had still not been final results from her husband’s autopsy to either confirm or deny her suspicions.

Whether or not James Howie’s sanding methods ultimately led to the asbestos exposure that caused his mesothelioma diagnosis, his case is nonetheless another example that a mesothelioma diagnosis can happen to anyone, not just factory workers.

If you or a loved one have an asbestos related disease such as mesothelioma, speak with one of our mesothelioma attorneys today and learn more about any legal actions you may be able to pursue.

Asbestos

With the new school year getting underway and many parents getting their children settled into new schools across the country, safety precautions are generally a top priority. For families at George Washington University, one of those precautions involves asbestos exposure.

According to the GW Hatchet, the University’s newspaper, Rice Hall – which houses offices for some of the school’s highest officials – underwent asbestos abatement projects in August to prepare for renovations that are scheduled for the building in the near future.

Darrell Darnell, the senior associate vice president for safety and security at the school, said that students and faculty at the school would not be put in any unsafe conditions or see any adverse health effects caused by any exposure to asbestos. However, he also would not divulge what floors, pipes, tiles, or other building products in the hall had been found to contain asbestos.

“GW has an asbestos policy that guides the maintenance of asbestos-containing materials in University buildings,” added William Flint, the university’s director of the office of health and safety. “Prior to renovation or demolition of any university building, a hazardous materials survey is conducted using District of Columbia and EPA regulations to determine the risk to students, staff, faculty and construction workers. If hazardous materials are discovered, proper abatement is conducted to remove the materials prior to construction or demolition.”

The abatement processes only took one week. Hopefully there will be no asbestos problems at the university as classes get underway this fall.

If you or a loved one has been exposed to asbestos by using certain products or working for certain companies and have subsequently been diagnosed with mesothelioma, there may be legal options worth pursuing to obtain a mesothelioma settlement. Contact a mesothelioma attorney if you have any questions about the details of asbestos law and what is needed to pursue a settlement from the manufacturer of the asbestos product (not necessarily your company)

Asbestos

We all know that schools use equipment that is old, dated or even expired on occasion. This can include old textbooks, course materials or even laboratory equipment. Before we knew of the dangers associated with asbestos, many schools used the material in laboratory exercises. Although the use of asbestos in schools has dropped off, school officials in Australia recently made a grim discovery with their science equipment. In the state of Queensland, which is supposed to have the strictest anti-asbestos regulations in Australia, asbestos-containing materials was found in school science kits.

Asbestos, the deadly substance known to cause cancers such as mesothelioma, harms its victims when the fibers are inhaled. Many of the science kits were more than 20 years old, meaning an entire generation of Townsville students were put at risk by using this equipment. It is indeed conceivable that similar situations exist in many American schools; this discovery is certainly cause for concern here, even though officials in Queensland contend that the materials posed little threat to students.

Queensland’s Minister of Education, Cameron Dick, said an alert was issued to schools at the time and a whopping 159 kits were taken out of area schools. According to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Dick contended that students were at minimal risk as the asbestos was in rock form. “I’m advised by our asbestos health adviser, Dr. Keith Adams, that there is minimal risk to any student who may have come in contact with that and we have withdrawn all the mineral kits from Queensland schools,” he said.

Meanwhile, NineMSN is reporting that the asbestos-tainted science kits have generated considerable political fights between Queensland officials. “Labor is dangerously exposing our children to asbestos,” Bruce Flegg of the center-right Liberal National Party said on Monday. “We are still seeing far too many examples of children and teachers who are exposed to potentially deadly airborne asbestos fibers. It would seem Labor chose to keep the revelation under wraps to avoid adverse publicity.”

Queensland’s Premier, Anna Bligh of the leftist Labor Party, blamed the opposition for the asbestos material found in the schools. She said, “It was not the Labor Party who put asbestos in schools. It was the Liberal and National parties of Queensland who continued to put it in our schools long after the world knew that it was a dangerous material.” Bligh called her party’s efforts, “The biggest asbestos removal program in the country.”

The finger-pointing between politicians is incredible. Shouldn’t they be more concerned that these potentially dangerous materials were readily available in schools? This attitude is something we see in countries all around the world, including in the U.S. Even though this particular incident occurred in Australia, it’s a good reminder that we should be vigilant about the materials and products our schools and community centers use on a regular basis. Let’s ensure the safety of our children.

Let’s ban asbestos now.

Asbestos

Industrialized nations have been living with the uses of asbestos – and consequences from that use — for more than a century. But it’s hard to imagine that we’ve been living for nearly 50 years with evidence, studies and research into the dangers of asbestos, and yet, it still continues to be manufactured, used and exported in many corners of the globe.

Here’s a chronological look at 10 articles over the past five decades that chronicle the effects of asbestos, as well as efforts in the global fight to ban this deadly material.

·”Asbestos Increases Cigaret Cancer Peril,” The Milwaukee Journal, June 20, 1967

The combination of exposure to asbestos particles at work and smoking cigarets [sic] greatly increases the risk of developing lung cancer, it was reported Monday.

·”Non-Tobacco Additives Probe Asked,” Lodi News-Sentinel, Sept. 28, 1970

Attorney Ralph Nader asked the Federal Trade Commission Sunday to investigate use of asbestos, glass fibers, and other non-tobacco additives in cigars and cigarettes.

·”Asbestos Fiber Peril in Coats,” Miami News, June 8, 1971

About 200,000 women’s coats containing potentially hazardous amounts of asbestos fibers woven into the woolen fabric have been sold in this country since last fall, a New York physician reported yesterday.

·”Asbestos, Cancer Linked,” St. Petersburg Times, July 27, 1972

Two cancer researchers say they have confirmed through human lung cancer cases the theory that occupational exposure to asbestos enhances the cancer-causing effects of cigarette smoke.

·”Asbestos to Claim 1 Million Lives, Researcher Says,” Los Angeles Times, Feb. 23, 1973

A noted researcher told a Senate subcommittee today that by the end of this century asbestos will claim the lives of a million Americans who have worked or are now working with the fibrous mineral.

·”Powders Contain Asbestos Fibres,” Montreal Gazette, March 8, 1976

Ten out of 19 body and baby powders tested at Mount Sinai Hospital were contaminated with asbestos fibres capable of causing a rare form of chest and abdominal cancer, researchers said yesterday.

·”Petitioners Seek to Ban Asbestos,” The Free Lance-Star, July 15, 1976

Consumer and environmental organizations are petitioning the government to ban wall patching compounds containing asbestos, saying more than one million Americans may be exposed each year to the potentially cancer-causing fibers in their own homes.

·”Asbestos Feared As Hazard in All New Jersey Schools,” Miami News, Jan. 4, 1977

The air in New Jersey schools may have high levels of asbestos fibers, scientists reported yesterday after studying the levels at eight schools in one county.

·”US Bans Asbestos Products,” Milwaukee Sentinel, April 29, 1977

The Consumer Product Safety Commission Thursday banned spackling compounds and other wall patching mixtures containing asbestos as possible causes of cancer.

·”40 Added to List of Hair Dryers Containing Asbestos,” Deseret News, April 18, 1979

The Consumer Product Safety Commission says it has identified more than 40 additional models of hair dryers that contain asbestos, an insulation material that has been linked to cancer.

Despite the mounting evidence, product bans and agency directives in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, the U.S. still has not acted to ban asbestos. The EPA banned most asbestos-containing products in 1989, only to have that rule overturned in the federal court system. Numerous bills in Congress have gone nowhere, most recently a bill passed by the Senate in 2007 that would have banned the importation of asbestos.

Asbestos is still found in more than 3,000 consumer products, and chances are you know someone who has been affected by this deadly cancer-causing agent. After 50 years, don’t you think it’s time to Ban Asbestos Now?

Asbestos

Today, the United States processes more than 2,200 metric tons of deadly asbestos materials each year. In our opinion, that’s 2,200 metric tons too many, even though it is a significant drop compared to our usage 50 years ago. Although our country’s widespread usage of asbestos has diminished significantly over the past three decades, the toxic product is still actively mined, sold and used in construction projects worldwide, particularly in Asia. According to data compiled by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, China and India, the two most populous countries on the planet, represented the two largest consumers of asbestos. Other major consumers include Russia, Kazakhstan, Brazil, Thailand, Uzbekistan and Ukraine.

“When asbestos was banned in industrialized countries and [producers] started to lose money, they came to the developing countries to recover their investments,” Dr. Guadalupe Aguilar Madrid told the Center for Public Integrity and the BBC.

Each year, one million metric tons of asbestos is mined in Russia, which exports most of this mineral and keeps only a quarter of this production within its own boundaries. On the other hand, China uses a staggering 626,000 metric tons of the toxic substance annually. But only half of that is mined domestically, and the country relies on other asbestos producing countries, such as Canada, Russia and Brazil, to make up the difference. India uses 300,000 metric tons annually, but produces very little domestically, relying almost exclusively on imports.

Given all that is known about the dangers associated with asbestos use, the numbers are staggering. If you were to look at production per capita, you’d see that Russia, a country of about 140 million residents, mines a whopping 15 pounds of asbestos per person, per year!

Research has shown that there is no safe level of asbestos exposure which avoids any risk of mesothelioma or other asbestos-related diseases. Although it is comforting to know that production and consumption of asbestos in the United States is declining, the substance still poses a risk to Americans at home and abroad, a risk that can only be mitigated with a full ban on asbestos here.

We should encourage Congress to ban asbestos in the U.S., to set the right example for other leading world powers. It’s time to do the right thing. Join our fight. Help us ban asbestos now.

Asbestos

Imagine a hammock that more and more people keep piling into without anybody getting out. The weight would quickly become too burdensome to bear and, sagging with a tangle of limbs and torsos, the rope would break. That’s what companies whose livelihoods were once asbestosdependent are like. With billions paid in asbestos settlements each year, the financial strain of numerous personal injury lawsuits from employees exposed to asbestos is too much for any corporation to hold.

What’s best for both the injured employees seeking compensation as well as the companies themselves is for the hammock to hold, or at least have a safety net in place. That’s why more and more of those companies have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcies to reorganize their assets and debts as well as put aside money for injured asbestos workers into what are known as asbestos bankruptcy trusts. More and more of these have been established as more and more companies have filed Chapter 11’s over the past two decades.

The only problem with asbestos bankruptcy trusts is that the asbestos workers who are ill from asbestos exposure — whether with asbestosis,mesothelioma, or some other type of asbestos-related cancer — don’t receive what they need and deserve, which is the full value of their settlements. The system was created to make asbestos claims easier to file, often requiring no more than a diagnosis and a form to fill out. Yet, the amount of money that actually makes it to the injured worker is typically less than one third the amount of the settlement, according to a study by the RAND Corporation.

Now, there are around 50 different asbestos bankruptcy trusts paying out billions in asbestos claims each year. However, there are still many solvent companies liable for asbestos exposure injuries. Mesothelioma lawsuits are being filed against these solvent companies as regularly as the spinning of a well-oiled wheel. The companies have lawyers scrambling for ways to limit their liability and avoid taking responsibility for the widespread tragedy of asbestos-related cancer and other illness. To that end, defense lawyers want access to detailed records from asbestos bankruptcy trusts, allowing them to see who is paid how much for what specific illness.

Lately, Republicans in congress are looking at the issue, deciding whether to make changes to these asbestos bankruptcy trusts. As reported by the National Law Journal, asbestos lawyers andmesothelioma attorneys argue that the corporate defense lawyers want this reform only to expose the spokes of that well-oiled wheel so that they can throw in sticks.

There is no telling how soon or in what way Republicans in Congress will act on this issue. Meanwhile, if you have mesothelioma or another asbestos-caused illness, you may have a claim against an existing or future asbestos bankruptcy trust. If you were exposed to multiple asbestos products that were manufactured by different bankrupt companies, you may actually qualify for compensation under several trusts.

Asbestos