Mesothelioma Attorney

Many things which were once thought to be safe substances have since proved to be a danger to human health. Asbestos is one of those substances and the extent of the damage it has caused to those who have unwittingly been exposed to it are yet unknown. Once prized for its strength, flexibility, and ability to resist heat and chemical damage, this mineral was widely used by builders and appliance manufacturers as insulation throughout the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Exposure to asbestos has since been linked to several types of lung cancer, particularly to Mesothelioma. What is asbestos, how does it cause cancer, and what can be done to reverse the damage?

Asbestos is a class of silicate minerals with very desirable physical properties. There are six types all of which are comprised of long, threadlike crystals. It is the inhalation of these crystals which leads to the types of cancer which have been strongly associated with asbestos exposure.

It is naturally present in the air in very low levels, but it is the high concentrations of the substance as found in building materials which has caused a health hazard, most notably to construction workers, who came into closest and most long-term contact. Asbestos has two classifications, chrysotile and amphibole. The chrysotile type has a slightly different chemical composition to amphibole and was used mainly as an ingredient in concrete roof sheets, brake linings, pipe insulation, and floor tiles.

It is not as deadly as the amphibole types, but is still a carcinogenic which has been banned in more than ten countries and is used under very careful circumstances in the United States and Europe. Amphibole asbestos is a classification of five minerals: amosite, crocidolite, tremolite, actinolite, and anthophyllite. These are characterized by short, wide fibers which form in bundles and have great strength and flexible as well as heat resistant properties, which is what made them so ideal for use in insulation of all types.

Evidence of asbestos use has been traced back to several ancient cultures including the Greeks, who named it. It appears to have been used as an ingredient in cooking pots to strengthen them and make them more impervious to heat damage. In modern times it came to widespread use during the industrial revolution.

Its flexible and heat resistant nature led it to be used commercially to manufacture fire-retardant coatings, insulation, tiles, bricks, cement, and to cover engine parts, pipes, and electrical cords. It was its ability to be formed into long, flexible sheets for insulating pipes in ship manufacturing that lead to an explosion in use and subsequent exposure to asbestos for thousands of shipyard workers during the second World War. The use of amphobile asbestos has since been banned in Europe and many South American countries, and severely limited in the United States. Many industries have had to completely remove asbestos and replace it with safer materials, and wrongful death and other class-action suits have become a cottage industry in the legal profession.

Though noted for centuries, the true nature of the danger of asbestos exposure became known in the mid-twentieth century as thousands of shipyard and construction workers began to develop lung problems such as Asbestiosis, which is a disease caused by inhaling dust, and Mesothelioma, a formerly rare disease which affects the outer lining of the lungs and chest wall.

It can affect other areas of the body such as the lining of the abdominal cavity and the lining of the area surrounding the heart. This disease has been directly linked to asbestos exposure in construction and factory workers and their families, as well as persons living near plants where it was manufactured.

It is estimated that 14 of every 100 shipyard workers of the WWII-era contracted this disease. Its symptoms include chest pain, shortness of breath, persistent cough, wheezing, and abdominal pain and swelling. Fluids on the lungs are a big concern. Treatment of Mesothelioma varies depending on how advanced the cancer is and can range from radiation to a pleurectomy, which removes the lung, pleura and part of the diaphragm. It can take up to 30 years after exposure to manifest and can be treated but not cured.