Asbestos compensation ruling upheld

Workers who were exposed to asbestos at the Riegel Paper Mills in New Jersey will be awarded their previous monetary compensation as a result of a ruling by the New Jersey state court.

The original trial, held in the Civil Division of Superior Court in New Brunswick, dragged on for 6 weeks. The following rulings for compensation were issued: Walter L. Patton, $514,220; the estate of Harry H. Wilson, $76,102; and the estate of Walter W. Grube, $259,045.

The defendant, Scapa Dryer Fabrics, Inc., a manufacturer of the felts that dried the wet rolls of paper on the mill’s paper machines, argued that the rulings for compensation were too large and appealed the awards, claiming that the jury had failed to account for the liability to the other defendants due to some errors in the trial. The appeal was dismissed on the grounds that it was “without merit.”

The dryer felts that the men worked with contained asbestos, the dangerous mineral that can cause mesothelioma. Despite the fact that Scapa knew asbestos could be released from the felts, the company failed to place warning labels on them, and the men were never instructed to take any specific precautions related to asbestos around the machines.

Jury awards $700,000 to mesothelioma victim

The family of Tom Firth, a 72-year old South Carolina resident who suffered from mesothelioma caused by asbestos exposure, was awarded $700,000 as a result of a verdict against Garlock Sealing Technology, LLC.

Firth’s only known asbestos exposure happened at Bethlehem Steel, Sparrows Point, in the 1950s, where he worked for less than a year. As a mechanic’s assistant on a battery of coke ovens, he worked with Garlock gaskets and packing on the pumps and valves associated with the coke ovens.

“While Garlock has admitted outside of the courtroom that their products can cause cancer, they refuse to do so in the courtroom. It was satisfying to hear the jury unanimously find that Garlock’s asbestos products were dangerous and that Garlock is responsible for this terrible loss to the Firth family,” said Chris Panatier, lead counsel for the Firth family.

Last remaining W.R. Grace defendant has charges dismissed

According to a notice filed in the U.S. District Court in Missoula, federal prosecutors have dismissed charges against the only remaining defendant in the criminal case of W.R. Grace & Co.

Last month, Grace and three individual defendants were acquitted on charges relating to a criminal conspiracy involving Clean Air Act violations and obstruction of justice. A fourth defendant, O. Mario Favorito, was removed from the case due to potential conflicts with his defense. He was slated to stand trial separately in September, but his case was dismissed on May 8, 2009.

The case against Grace began in 2005 when a federal grand jury handed down an unprecedented indictment, alleging a 30-year conspiracy to defraud the government and knowingly endanger the residents of Libby, Missouri. While seven Grace employees were initially named in the indictment, charges were dropped at the request of the prosecutors, who conceded they lacked the evidence needed to convict the men.

A mortality study at the Center for Asbestos Related Disease in Libby has found 227 community members died from the asbestos diseases like mesothelioma cancer, and lists more than 1,800 active cases resulting from exposure to the deadly mineral. The study also relates scores of deaths to non-occupational asbestos-exposures, and finds that 77 people who never worked at Grace’s mine in Libby have died of asbestos disease since 1998.

Asbestos attorneys ask government to release hospital information

Asbestos attorneys have petitioned the federal government on behalf of a client who claims that his home was contaminated with asbestos.

The petition asks the government to release information with regards to the presence of the dangerous mineral at the VA Medical Center in Marion, Illinois, and was filed in the US District Court in Benton. The attorneys’ client claims that his home was contaminated by asbestos as a result of his wife working at the medical facility and bringing particles of asbestos dust home on her clothing.

Attorney John Alleman, who filed the petition, said: “We want to know exactly what the VA and the US government knows.”

According to reports, the government conducted tests at the facility earlier this year, and the attorneys are after the results of those tests. The petition is seeking “all information connected to reports of asbestos contamination at the facility; protocols, plans and programs for testing, monitoring and treatment of families members to facility employees; plans and specifications for the installation, maintenance and abatement of asbestos at the facility; and a listing of all employees, non-employees, contractors and others who may have knowledge of asbestos exposure.”

Mesothelin Could be used to Treat Mesothelioma

A recent study revealed that mesothelin could be targeted to help treat mesothelioma and other cancer patients.

The Molecular Cancer Therapeutics Journal printed the article and said that researchers have found that mesothelin could be a perfect target because of how it is distributed throughout the body.

Mesothelin is a protein found in small quantities in the lung, abdominal, and heart lining in healthy humans. Patients with mesothelioma and other cancers have very high numbers of mesothelin. Researchers are trying to create antibodies that will bypass normal cells and target the mesothelin. There are concerns about the side effects of the antibodies.

Yang Feng is a biologist with the Center for Cancer Research Nanobiology Program of the National Cancer Institute. He said, “This reaction by the immune system is a severe side effect, and makes it risky to re-administer the treatment agent to patients.”

Asbestos Causes Boy Scout Camp to Shut Down

Seven hundred boy scout campers will have to find a new place to camp this summer after their old Vermont campsite was shut down. The ground is not safe at the camp site because of high levels of asbestos.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) warned the scouts of the danger of asbestos contamination, so the head of the scouts decided to close the camp at the Mount Norris Scout Reservation. The camp is about three and a half miles away from an abandoned mine where asbestos was found according to the Scout Executive Richard Stockton.

The Vermont Department of Health posted a report this past winter stating that the residents in the area around the mine were at risk. The scare lightened a little, but the scouts wanted to make sure there was no asbestos by taking tests of the ground. The asbestos exposure can cause cancer called mesothelioma which is nearly always fatal.

Stockton reported that, “There was enough of it that was in the questionable range, that we wanted to make sure that no matter what our kids and our families and our staff were protected.” He hopes the camp will be ready by next January since the EPA is working to clean the area up.

Mesothelioma therapy developments show new treatment target

A recent study in the Molecular Cancer Therapeutics journal has detailed a promising new target for treating mesothelioma called mesothelin.

This protein, which is found on the surface of cells, might also help doctors diagnose certain cancers. Mesothelin is only found in small amounts in cells lining the lungs, abdominal cavity, and heart in healthy people, but the protein is produced in higher amounts by mesothelioma, ovarian, and pancreatic cancers.

Researchers are focusing on specialized antibodies that attack mesothelin while bypassing normal cells. Several research teams are already conducing studies using mouse and combination mouse-human antibodies against mesothelin, but there is a concern that patients’ immune systems might recognize animal antibodies as foreign and mistakenly attack them.

In addition to its potential use in cancer treatment, mesothelin is also being investigated as a diagnostic marker. Workers who have been exposed to asbestos show high levels of mesothelin in their blood years before they are formally diagnosed with mesothelioma.

Increased Budget Funds Hope for Cancer Victims

Across the United States, medical scientists, researchers, and institutions are scrambling to get some of the thirty-percent increase in funding allotted to the National Institute of Health by President Obama.

Many of the individuals and institutions submitting applications for funding to the NIH plan to research cancer, and some specifically hope to find a cure for asbestos related diseases like mesothelioma. In particular, the University of Chicago (who has submitted several hundred applications)wants funds to study lung tumors, breast cancer, and mesothelioma.

Mesothelioma is a dangerous cancer caused by exposure to asbestos. Asbestos exposure can have several profoundly negative side effects. Among them are asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma. Mesothelioma is a particularly aggressive cancer.

Gene Test for Cancer Survival

A recent study reports that a 4-gene expression ratio test reliably predicts survival of patients diagnosed with malignant pleural mesothelioma.

As reported in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, the test was developed by Dr. Raphael Bueno from Harvard Medical School in Boston. Dr. Bueno and his colleagues found that patients assigned by the test to a “good outcome” group had significantly higher post-surgery survival than the average mesothelioma survival rate, and those assigned to the “poor outcome” group survived significantly less than the average.

Though possibly disheartening, this test can be useful for doctors and patients deciding on a course of action after diagnosis. For example, surgery would not be recommended to a patient who has been determined via gene test to have a poor chance of survival, thus saving him or her valuable months.

Similar tests are being developed for other cancers including lung, bladder, prostate and breast cancer.

Mesothelioma cancer deaths from asbestos still rising in U.S.

According to health officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have reported that deaths from malignant mesothelioma are still on the rise.

The CDC analyzed death records and found that 18,068 deaths from malignant mesothelioma occurred between 1999 and 2005, and that during that period, the number of mesothelioma deaths per year rose from 2482 to 2704.

The CDC’s weekly bulletin on illness and death shows that the vast majority of mesothelioma deaths involved white men. The state of Maine had the highest number of deaths with 173 with an annual rate of 27.5 per million.

Mesothelioma, along with some lung cancer and gastrointestinal cancer, is linked to asbestos exposure, usually in an occupational setting like refineries or ship yards.

Student newspaper finds asbestos in classrooms

A high school newspaper in Muncie, Indiana found asbestos in several rooms and stirred a controversy by reporting that fact.

During its investigation, the newspaper collected samples form a science room and form an art classroom and had them tested. Both samples tested positive for asbestos.

School officials have accused the students — and the newspaper’s advisor — of “unauthorized disturbance of encapsulated asbestos” and notified parents and teachers that the two classrooms will remain closed until they can be tested.

The advisor has been threatened with loosing her job for allowing the story to break.

School officials note that the high school does contain asbestos products — as do many buildings built before 1979 — but they are safely “encapsulated” and would remain inert unless disturbed.

Press freedom experts contacted for a story that appeared in the Muncie daily newspaper, the Star Press, argue that the asbestos was found in ceiling tiles.

“… students touch those tiles all the time. They jump up and touch it. They throw pencils at it. They hang streamers from it during Spirit Week. So maybe it might not be a bad idea to tell students not to interact with the tile if the tile is all that stands between you and cancer. You might tell them that,” said Adam Goldstein, an attorney for the Student Press Law Center in Arlington, Va.

Asbestos exposure can lead to several forms of cancer and there is no safe level of exposure. The most pernicious disease attributed to asbestos exposure is mesothelioma, an aggressive form of cancer. Symptoms often take 20-30 years to develop and by the time they do, it is usually too late for effective treatment.

Asbestos Dumping a Problem on Campus, College Professor Faces Charges

A professor at Keene State College in Keene, New Hampshire will have to answer to charges related to the illegal dumping of asbestos waste on the college's campus. Professor Lourdes Ramirez-Crucellas has been indicted in Cheshire County Court.

According to Mary Jensen, coordinator of sustainability programs and recycling for KSC, the illegally dumped asbestos was discovered by custodial staff. "I'm aware that there's illegal dumping that happens on campus from students. That's something I've been paying attention to more than anything," Jensen said.

All the fuss about the dumping incident is justified, as asbestos can be very dangerous. Asbestos exposure has been linked to the development of mesothelioma, a rare type of cancer that affects only a few thousand people in America each year. The disease is incurable, but chemotherapy and other treatments are available. The cancer is very aggressive, and can lead to death within mere months after being diagnosed.

"There are people who use the campus dumpsters as though they are their own. So our trash person, sometimes he recognizes when stuff doesn't look like it comes from the students and he pays attention to that because we've talked a lot about how many people bring their stuff to campus and dump it," Jensen added.

Measures have been taken by the college to diminish the amount of dumping on campus. "As a process here on campus, we've made it a little harder to get to dumpsters unless you live on campus," Jensen added. "We've seen a pretty significant drop in our waste dumping over the last five years as we've worked harder to make it harder for people to be able to bring their household rubbish onto campus. Somehow they think it's okay for the college to pay for their waste disposal."

Asbestos-Caused Mesothelioma Claims Life of Wife, Mother

Mesothelioma has claimed the life of another victim. Now, the widower of Linda Sinnett is mourning her loss and remembering her life. John Sinnett lost his wife Linda to peritoneal mesothelioma this past July. This came as something of a shock, as Linda had never worked in an asbestos-laden environment.

"She was full of spirit," said John. The two had been friends since the age of six, were married for 35 years, and had three children together. "Linda was like the boxer Rocky. If the cancer knocked her down she would get up again and fight back. She was a loving woman who was very close to her family."

A coroner's inquest into Linda's death was held last week, where it was revealed that she was likely exposed to asbestos as a child. Wiltshire and Swindon Coroner David Ridley stated that he believes Linda was exposed to asbestos brought home of the dirty work coveralls of her father. When Linda's mother washed the clothes, airborne asbestos fibers could have been released. "In all probability the washing was done in the same area as the kitchen. Come tea time he (her father) would come home, take his overalls off where plenty of asbestos fibers would be thrown into the same area. Consequently this would come into contact with the food and preparation areas and be ingested."

Peritoneal mesothelioma is the least common type of mesothelioma. In the United Kingdom, the peritoneal form of the disease accounts for only 30 percent of diagnosed cases. The most commonly diagnosed form of mesothelioma is pleural mesothelioma, which manifests within the lining of the lungs, and in extremely rare cases, mesothelioma is discovered in the pericardium, or lining of the heart.

Asbestos Exposure a Concern in Texas Following Structural Damage

In Cleburne, Texas, a wall that collapsed in a local apartment building complex has displaced tenants and raised concerns about asbestos. Those exposed to asbestos sometimes develop mesothelioma, and even exposure to asbestos in small amounts can lead to the development of fatal diseases. According to Cleburne Fire Chief Clint Ishmael, asbestos may be an issue at the 30 year old site.

"At this point, we haven't done any asbestos testing," Ishmael said. "It's quite possible there may be asbestos on the inside. If they start doing major repairs, there may have to be asbestos testing."

The incident occurred last week at the Cleburne Plaza Apartments. Families in two units had to be moved out, and are living temporarily in a local hotel. No injuries occurred. The collapse of the rock wall revealed insulation which could contain asbestos, as well as wood framework.

"It looks like moisture from the recent rains got in behind that one wall," Ishmael said. "It caused the gyp rock to get wet. That made the weight of the plaster more than the wall could bear. Essentially, the plaster peeled off and came down in a big heap."

"Our main concern is how many other places in the complex may have similar problems. The building department went through and looked at some of these walls, and they believed there were some problems. This wall had a catastrophic failure without warning. Had somebody been underneath it,that would have been a real problem...We requested that the [apartment] company get a structural engineer to come out."

"We don't know if there are additional problems," Ishmael said, "and we are trying to err on the side of caution and keep this from being a bigger problem."