First thing is first. What is mesothelioma? It is an aggressive cancer that attacks the lining of your lungs, specifically the epithelial cells, typically associated with asbestos which was a product that was used both in construction, early 20th century, i.e. tile or sheetrock, which is the stuff that makes up the actual walls of your home.
It was used early in the 20th century in these particular instances. Later in the 20th century, it was used as a flame retardant as well as insulation before fiberglass became the primary use for installation as we all know today.
The byproduct of the use of asbestos is this particular form of cancer, mesothelioma, which has ravaged the American public and unfortunately the chemical companies that were responsible for creating and using this particular substance went to great lengths to keep its potential carcinogenic or cancer-causing agents a secret from the American public and they successfully did so for the better part of 50 years.
At the same time, they were aggressively marketing this particular product for all of the various areas that I’ve just finished mentioning.
The most common area of exposure was navy yards, dock workers, anybody who works in welding, anybody who works around boats or the like.
Those are the people who are most likely to have come into contact with asbestos. Asbestos causes this particular form of cancer, which is an extremely aggressive form of cancer. As far as survival rates are concerned, the survival rate for mesothelioma is about 40 percent once you’ve been diagnosed. In other words, you got a 40 percent chance of living for at least one year after you’ve been diagnosed with mesothelioma.
It’s actually one of the longest ongoing mass tort claims in American history because the litigation and claims against them have been ongoing I would say the better part of 30 or 40 years ever since it became clear that this in fact was a cancer-causing agent.
The common symptoms that are associated with mesothelioma is actually going to be something similar to either pneumonia or potentially bronchitis. You’re going to have a hacking cough, potential sputum or phlegm, blood and just an overall feeling of sickness like you’ve got pneumonia or something along those lines.
The significant thing to take away from all of this is if you’ve experienced that or you think that you’ve been exposed in any way to asbestos in the context of your job or just generally speaking in your house if you’ve got an older home. There’s a possibility that you may have a potential mesothelioma case.
If you have questions about mesothelioma or any other questions that you may have, please contact the Hartman Law Firm at 843-300-7600 today.
No comments:
Post a Comment