Mesothelioma Case

November 28, 2015

Promising Treatment Options for Mesothelioma

When a victim first learns he or she has a malignant mesothelioma, there is often very little time to reflect on the diagnosis. The patient is normally told he or she have very little time left to live – in many cases, this means a matter of months or less than a year.

The mesothelioma patient can elect to have treatment, but this is a hard decision. Most treatment options are able to extend a patient’s life for anywhere from a matter of months to even a year or two, but this extension comes at a big cost – not only in terms of dollars (which happens to be quite expensive), but also in terms of pain and suffering. If a mesothelioma victim elects not to undergo treatment, he or she will essentially be given painkillers and breathing aids and placed in a hospice type status for the duration of his or her life. Continue reading

November 9, 2015

Report: New Research on BAP1 and Mesothelioma

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

According to a recent article from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (one of the nation’s leading cancer hospitals), new collaborative research suggests that there may be beneficial treatment for mesothelioma if the BAP1 gene is targeted.

Mesothelioma is technically not what we typically refer to as lung cancer. It is an entirely different type of cancer caused by exposure to toxic asbestos fibers, which become embedded in a layer of tissue surrounding internal organs known as the mesothelium. Mesothelioma can form in the chest cavity, stomach, or other organs, but, since it affects breathing and often develops in the lungs, many people incorrectly believe it is the same as lung cancer. Continue reading

November 1, 2015

Bacon Now Listed with Asbestos and Smoking as Deadly Carcinogens

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

There has been a lot of media attention lately and strong public reaction about a report released concerning bacon, which should be expected from both camps on the validity and importance of this recent report by the Worth Health Organization (WHO), according to a recent article by Reuters.

The report conducted by the World Heath Organization and its Internal Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) stated there was a causal link between eating red meat and developing prostate cancer and pancreatic cancer. The agency also found that eating processed meats such as what is found in many sandwich meats, bacon, and other processed foods, increases one’s risk of colorectal cancer, if the patient eats these processed meats every day. Continue reading

October 24, 2015

Firefighters Exposed to Asbestos

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

When firefighters arrive at a burning building, truck crews will typically go to work fighting their way inside to look for victims, while ladder companies and engine companies set up and start fighting the fire itself. Every aspect of working as a firefighter and responding to a blaze is very dangerous. There is always the risk firefighters will be badly burned, trapped under a building as it falls apart around them, or suffer severe injury from breathing thick smoke.

To prevent smoke inhalation injuries, firefighters will often wear a self-contained breathing apparatus, like a scuba driver wears, but this equipment is designed to work in fire instead of underwater. Air packs firefighters wear are often called Scott Packs after the company that makes them. This is the same company that makes respirators and ventilators for use in asbestos abatement projects, but the two products are not interchangeable. In other words, a firefighter air pack is not extremely effective at keeping a firefighter safe from asbestos inhalation in a fire, and an asbestos abatement pack wouldn’t be much help in fire. Continue reading

October 3, 2015

Results not Promising for New Mesothelioma Drug

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

As many know too well, there is not much doctors can do for patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma. This is not say there aren’t a multitude of FDA-approved treatment options, because there are, but even in the best case scenarios, patients undergo invasive and painful procedures and may only be given an extra few months to live.

There is, however, hope that, one day, there will be real treatment options for mesothelioma patients that can actually arrest the growth of tumors or even force them into remission. One drug that people thought might help doctors and patients achieve these goals was known as VS-6063, being developed by Verestem Inc. pharmaceuticals based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The company had recruited patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma in 2011, and, by 2012, the company had announced it was closing enrollment in the study because it had enough patients with the deadly disease to complete the study. Continue reading

September 9, 2015

One Man’s Struggle with Mesothelioma

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

A diagnosis of malignant pleural mesothelioma is devastating.

A person begins to experience chest pain, abdominal pain, or shortness of breath and goes to the doctor to see what is wrong. He or she is told they have malignant pleural mesothelioma, and even though patient only just learned of having this illness, he or she is also told most patients do not live long after being diagnosed. The vast majority of cases prove lethal in as few as three years, with many of those victims not surviving a full year after learning they are sick.

Patients are also told there are treatment options, but they involve high doses of chemotherapy, radiation, major surgery, or a combination of all of these treatments, and, even in the best cases, generally only extend a patient’s life for a relatively short period of time. Continue reading

August 25, 2015

New Research on New Mesothelioma Treatments

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

There are several treatment options available for patients who are diagnosed with malignant pleural mesothelioma. The problem with all of these treatment options is they generally do not work very well. Mostly, they are able to sustain a patient’s life for a matter of months, so the victim has longer to spend with his or her family. However, those few extra months, even in the best-case scenarios, come at very high cost.

Treatment options typically involve large doses of potent chemotherapy and radiation, and may involve invasive surgery where entire organs and large sections of tissue are removed. Once the organ tissue is removed, more chemotherapy or radiation is administered internally to the site of the tumor. Even if these procedures are successful, most patients will still die shortly after the procedure and will be in a great deal of pain during that time. Continue reading

June 17, 2015

Asbestos Illness Beyond Mesothelioma

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

When we think of asbestos and asbestos-related illness, we primarily think of mesothelioma and asbestosis. However, asbestos exposure has been linked to other forms of cancer and respiratory illness besides mesothelioma. Many of these medical conditions are often deadly too.

According to a recent article from Outbreak News Today, asbestos exposure can also cause victims to develop lung cancer, bowel cancer, ovarian cancer and laryngeal cancer. While lung cancer is typically linked to smoking, credible research has proven long-term exposure to asbestos has been demonstrated to cause lung cancer. What may be more surprising is that, worldwide, more cases of lung cancer resulting in fatalities are linked to asbestos exposure than cigarette smoking.
Continue reading

June 11, 2015

Mesothelioma Lawsuits over Asbestos-Free Products

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

According to a recent news article from the Legal Intelligencer, while companies are not strictly (automatically) liable for mesothelioma and other asbestos-related illness caused by products they did not manufacture, they may still be liable under a traditional negligence cause of action with proof of duty, breach, and causation being required.

This is according to a recent ruling by a federal judge in Pennsylvania. While this is not United States Supreme Court precedence, many industry experts believe it may be foreshadowing a similar ruling from the high court. In Tincher v. Omega Fox, the case over which the federal judge presided, plaintiff had worked as a propeller mechanic on airplane engines manufactured by defendant.

While defendant manufactured the airplane engines, many of these engines contained aftermarket insulation made by other companies and installed in the engines.
Continue reading

May 16, 2015

Asbestos in Space Flight Programs

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

When we think about all the amazing inventions and discoveries associated with NASA over the last half century, it’s impossible not to wonder what the future holds. Even though the shuttle program is over, and the only place to see a NASA-manned vehicle is a museum, engineers are hard at work designing a new rocket system designed to send astronauts to Mars.

One thing that may come as a surprise is, despite all of the cutting-edge technology, asbestos has played a major a role in spaceflight, and, to some extent, still does. As discussed in a feature from NASA Spaceflight.com, asbestos-containing material has been heavily used in various aspects of rocket design and heat shielding technology.

One the one hand, it is easy to see why asbestos was, and still is, a somewhat favored material. It is a naturally occurring element, which is easy to mine, and cheap to refine into manufactured products. It an excellent insulator from heat, caustic chemicals, electricity, and fire, and it can also be spun into extremely lightweight textiles. Weight reduction is a major goal in spaceflight, as these machines have to reach speeds of around 20,000 MPH to clear Earth’s atmosphere and get into space.
Continue reading