Mesothelioma Law Blog

£10k Mesothelioma Payout

An average of £10,000 will be available to sufferers of asbestos-linked cancer from Wednesday, the social development minister has confirmed.

It will be funded by recovery from successful civil compensation pay-outs.

Read More on this story here.

If you Have Mesothelioma

An open line of communication between a patient and his or her physician is vital when dealing with a serious disease such as mesothelioma. There will be many questions regarding treatment, whether palliative or aggressive, choices to deal with, and life issues to confront. Being informed and proactive in your care will give you a sense of empowerment.

Although most physicians have limited time to spend with each patient at appointments, it is important to address issues as they occur and resolve them to the satisfaction of all parties involved. Initially, this may mean going to your appointment with a list of symptoms or concerns, or questions regarding specific tests that are recommended. Once mesothelioma has been diagnosed, you may have questions regarding treatment options.

Most questions from patients stem from an initial diagnosis of mesothelioma and subsequent treatment options. Following are some frequently asked questions regarding these two important issues.
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Telomerase Gene Sequence Uncovered

Scientists have unlocked the genetic sequence of the enzyme that controls whether cells reproduce or die-and is vital to the growth and spread of cancer.

The enzyme, telomerase, is responsible for nine out of ten types of cancerous tumors. Telomerase adds sequences of DNA to the end of chromosomes, called telomeres. These telomeres get shorter each time a cell divides, as a kind of natural clock, getting shorter each time a cell reproduces. When the telomere gets so short that it can no longer be divided, the cell dies. When the telomerase is overactive, cells continue to divide at advanced rates, which cause them to become cancerous.

For years, telomerase has been targeted by researchers searching for a way to stop the rapid reproduction of cancer cells. But the lack of understanding about the structure of its building block, TERT, (telomerase reverse transcriptase protein) has impeded researcher's efforts, until now.

"Studies of telomerase have been extremely difficult due to the size and complexity of the enzyme," said Emmanuel Skordalakes, structural biologist at Philadelphia's Wistar Institute and lead researcher of the study. Skordalakes and his team tried to cultivate a useable sample of TERT in hundreds of organisms before finding the key protein molecule in the red flour beetle.

"Telomerase is an ideal target for chemotherapy because it is active in all human tumors," said Skordalakes. "That means that a drug that deactivates telomerase would likely work against all cancers."

Although the 3-D modeling of the TERT protein is being hailed as a major breakthrough within the scientific community, some are cautioning against unrealistic expectations.

"People have been beating their heads against a wall for quite a while," acknowledges Elizabeth H. Blackburn, a biology and psychology professor at the University of California, and one of the original discoverers of telomerase. However, she is quick to point out that "the subtle details matter."

"This is a beetle. It's not a human."

Now that the basic component of telomerase has been modeled, researchers will be able to probe it for a way to develop a treatment to not only deactivate telomerase in cancerous cells, but a way to turn it on in normal cells-which could potentially undo the natural aging process.
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Angiogenesis and Anti-angiogenesis Drugs

Although progress has been made in the early detection of cancer, and in improved treatment options once cancer is diagnosed, there are still many cancers, including mesothelioma, which can not be cured and remain difficult to treat effectively.

In recent years, researchers have learned a great deal about how cancer cells differ from normal cells and, in an effort to find drugs without the potentially severe side effects of chemotherapy, have now discovered drugs which target the tumor itself while sparing the body’s normal cells. One such group are the anti-angiogenesis drugs.
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Federal Court Rules St. Louis Violated Asbestos Safety Standards

A federal court ruled the city of St. Louis violated federal asbestos safety standards when it allowed contractors to use a controversial asbestos removal procedure.

In 2000, the city of St. Louis began destroying 2,000 structures in order to clear space for an airport expansion project. Four years later the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that contractors had used an experimental and untested asbestos removal procedure on 260 homes within the Bridgeton community and planned to continue using it on other structures.

The procedure known as the "wet method" removes asbestos using high pressure water hoses to blast the material from pipes, walls and ceilings. The technique is supposed to control the release of asbestos fibers by keeping the material wet until it can be disposed.

However, many of the EPA's own experts called into question the safety of the procedure and argued for additional testing. The method is considered more cost-effective than traditional asbestos removal but is still being evaluated by the EPA with the most recent example being a test conducted on a Fort Worth apartment building.

A non-profit public interest law firm, Public Justice filed suit on behalf of residents who were worried about their health being compromised because the demolition occurred while they were still living in the area. They worried that runoff from the spraying may have contained asbestos fibers and when it dried, those fibers may have been released into the air.
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The History of the Asbestos Industry and Why You Are Intitled to Compensation

The asbestos industry has a dirty little secret. For centuries, there has been evidence that asbestos caused respiratory diseases in humans. By the 1930's, however, the asbestos industry was selling millions of dollars worth of asbestos insulation. Asbestos, a mineral, was plentiful and inexpensive. Best of all, it was a terrific insulating material. It was used in all sorts of products - pipecovering, cement, gaskets, blankets, and the like. It was even used in clothing, joint compound and other building materials, automotive products and other various uses.

There was only one problem-people who worked with it had a habit of dying from respiratory illnesses. The medical literature of the 40's and 50's were already developing a wealth of information about the hazards of asbestos. The medical and industrial fields were well aware of the dangerous nature of asbestos by this time.

It was around this time that the asbestos companies began to gather and form trade associations in order to strengthen their industry. Long ago, the asbestos trade associations and industry giants began to fund scientific studies to prove that asbestos was safe. Their scientists, however, came back with a different conclusion. Asbestos, they warned, was a highly toxic carcinogen. It caused respiratory illnesses, including cancer, in laboratory animals and, it was believed, in humans.

Faced with this evidence, some in the asbestos industry did the unthinkable-they covered it up. Scientific reports were edited and modified, test results were altered or destroyed, and funding was stopped. The asbestos industry then embarked on a campaign to keep the information from reaching the general public. All the while, manufacturers continued selling millions of dollars worth of asbestos containing products to the public. It was used in massive amounts in shipyards, commercial construction and residential construction. Manufacturers of safer, non-asbestos insulations were bought out by the asbestos industry giants, stifling competition and safeguarding the cover-up.

Through the tireless efforts of some pioneering scientists, the United States government finally realized the hazards of asbestos, and began a slow campaign to curtail, and ultimately prohibit, its use in the United States.
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Mesothelioma Compenstation

Victims of asbestos-related mesothelioma and lung cancer are entitled to compensation from the manufacturers of any asbestos containing product to which they were exposed in sufficient quantities to cause disease. The amount of compensation ultimately received varies in each individual case, but it is often a significant amount, depending on the product exposures that can be identified. This compensation is not a windfall. It is, rather, an attempt to make you whole in light of this devastating illness. Liability exists because asbestos product producing companies often covered up the fact that asbestos is hazardous, and made billions of dollars peddling deadly products. You, the unsuspecting user, are severely injured as a result.

Anyone who was injured as a result of their exposure to asbestos has a potential legal claim against the manufacturers of asbestos products. This can be significant for several reasons. The medical costs associated with treating a disease such as mesothelioma can be staggering. Moreover, legal compensation is a means by which many victims of mesothelioma provide enough money to support a spouse or loved one, or to leave behind a legacy (for example, to help put their grandchildren through college).
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Judge William Forbes Mesothelioma Story

William Forbes was from Norfolk Virginia. As a young man he enlisted in the Army, but arrived in Europe too late to take part in the action. Returning to the vicinity of his home town, he went back to school, obtained his high school diploma and went to college. During his college years, he spent two summer breaks working as an apprentice in the nearby shipyards. As a rigger's helper, he worked mostly in the deep innards of ships that were under repair.

Of course, these ships were lined with massive amounts of insulation made of asbestos. It was during these summers that he decided to attend law school. It was also during these summers that his exposure to asbestos would later lead to malignant mesothelioma.

After graduating from law school and entering law practice for several years, Judge Forbes ventured into politics. He became the first city attorney for the new City of Chesapeake and in 1975 became the areas first judge. In 1980, he became a judge in the Circuit Court.

More than 20 years after becoming a judge, in 1997, he noticed a pain in his left shoulder that was suspected to be arthritis. He underwent treatment, but it persisted. In 1998, a thoracic surgeon noted a large lung tumor on an x-ray. Judge Forbes was given the diagnosis of mesothelioma. The Judge learned that mesothelioma was a deadly disease that was related to asbestos exposure. He thought back almost 50 years earlier when he had worked in the shipyards and was exposed to asbestos every day during his summer breaks. Late in late 1998, Judge Forbes died of mesothelioma.
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Mesothelioma Lawsuits

A mesothelioma case can help a victim seek reparations for medical expenses, lost income and pain and suffering. Mesothelioma develops almost exclusively as a result of toxic exposure to asbestos. This disease can remain latent in a victim for up to forty years; therefore people who were exposed to asbestos in the environment in the 1950s may still be at risk for developing this disease.
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The Fairness in Asbestos Injury Resolution Act of 2006 (The "FAIR Act")

The asbestos bill, which was introduced on the Senate floor three years ago, has been through a number of amendments to address various issues and concerns surrounding the proposed legislation. While proponents of the asbestos bill claim that the new trust fund would ensure prompt recovery for injured claimants, it could potentially deny many people the full compensation they deserve.

The FAIR Act asbestos bill, if passed, will require claimants to meet stronger medical criteria in order to receive compensation. In addition, the asbestos bill would prevent asbestos manufacturers and other defendants from being punished for their wrongdoing.

For example, companies that would be ordered to pay billions of dollars in asbestos lawsuits under today's laws would only be required to pay millions for the asbestos bill trust fund, thus largely skirting liability for their reckless negligence in allowing people to be exposed to asbestos.

The FAIR Act would ultimately prove to be unfair for thousands of people who have suffered from mesothelioma or other serious illnesses due to asbestos exposure.
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