Monday, August 27, 2012

All About Asbestos

By Justin Seber


The rare, but often lethal, disease known as mesothelioma has claimed many lives throughout the years. This dreaded disease is not readily diagnosed and treated, and may stay dormant for years.

The established cause of mesothelioma is said to be exposure to products and structures containing asbestos.

Another form of the disease is peritoneal mesothelioma, which occurs in the cells lining the abdominal cavity, or the peritoneum. The last form is the pericardial mesothelioma, which occurs in the cells lining the heart known as the pericardium.

Between 1999 and 2005, 18,068 Americans died of mesothelioma, according to www.mesotheliomaweb.org.

If you think you were exposed to products and structures containing asbestos somewhere sometime ago, be on your guard and watch out for early symptoms. It is essential that you determine the symptoms early on for a bigger chance of being cured. Early diagnosis and treatment is very important.

Among the early symptoms of mesothelioma are: shortness of or being out of breath, and a heavy feeling in the chest area. These most common symptoms are caused by fluid buildup in the lung area. For peritoneal mesothelioma, the symptoms include abdominal pain, back pain, nausea and vomiting, anemia and bowel obstruction.

Continuous exposure of humans to elevated levels of asbestos, however, is deadly. The first case of lung scarring due to asbestos exposure was published in 1899. The first asbestosis diagnosis was made in the United Kingdom in 1934. In the 1930s a British medical journal offered the first comprehensive look at asbestosis and recommended safety measures. The UK, then, regulated ventilation and made asbestosis a work-related disease, which is excusable. The U.S. followed suit ten years later.

Because mesothelioma could take years to unleash its deadly power and because the disease is not easy to cure, contracting this dreaded disease presents a very difficult financial burden to patients and their families.

What makes it hard to treat these asbestos-related diseases is the fact that signs and symptoms do not manifest right away. Some cases took decades before the victims felt the symptoms, and most of the time, the conditions have become worse.

It is recommended that you talk to several mesothelioma lawyers before engaging one. A good mesothelioma lawyer will not only help you obtain justice for yourself or your loved ones but will also get financial help for future medical needs.

There have been large lawsuits and class actions being litigated and settled that arise from personal injury related to asbestos exposure.

The established types of mesothelioma are pleural mesothelioma, peritoneal mesothelioma and pericardial mesothelioma. Pleural mesothelioma is the most common type, and it affects the linings of the lungs. Peritoneal mesothelioma and pericardial mesothelioma affect the lings of the abdominal cavity and the heart, respectively.

According to statistics, about 14 deaths per million are recorded per year. However, this number could be much higher because not all mesothelioma deaths are properly diagnosed. In addition, other cases were misdiagnosed as lung cancer, or other cancer of no known origin.

Aside from individual lawsuits, asbestos claimants usually banded together to form large groups to fight against big corporations. For instance, there are lawsuits that are or were litigated as class actions, collective actions or as multidistrict litigation.

It is vital that people with history of asbestos exposure to be cautious and observe themselves for the slightest symptoms. If you think you were exposed to products with asbestos, and you observe certain symptoms, consult a physician immediately.

Among the common symptoms of pleural mesothelioma is being out of breath and a feeling of heaviness in the chest area. This is due to fluid buildup in the lungs. Other symptoms include fatigue and pains.

Asbestos-related settlements not only provides for monetary awards and current treatments, it also provides for future claims and future medical expenses, as well as medical monitoring. Some settlements also provides for funeral expenses. There are many lawyers that offer their services for asbestos victims. However, it is important that you talk to several prospects before engaging an asbestos attorney.

Don't worry about attorneys' fees and expenses, most law firms offer payments schemes on a contingency basis. That is, you don't have to pay anything, and an asbestos attorney will get his or her pay when the case is won or settled. Some companies pay for asbestos attorney fees with respect to its settled asbestos claims.

It is essential that claimants are being represented by a good mesothelioma lawyer. He or she will make sure those responsible for the death or the sickness of a loved one will be held accountable. Losing loved ones is quite depressing. But, knowing that you fought to bring justice for them is exhilarating. Find a good mesothelioma lawyer to punish those responsible for your loss, and so that others won't suffer the same.




About the Author:



Monday, August 20, 2012

Asbestos Hazard

By Nick Hunter


If you have parents who served in the military, there are ongoing maritime lawsuits on behalf of families and estates of the servicemen who may have developed or even died from asbestos exposure or mesothelioma. The legal recourse years ago wasn't as solid as it is now. Now, hundreds of millions of dollars are being settled on behalf of maritime and military families in class action lawsuits.

This is something I am familiar with, as my dad served in the merchant marines after world war 2 and before the Korean War. The naval ships would use powdered asbestos mix that were used for many things. My dad used to comment that it was like mixing a cake and he remembered breathing this in for hours, days and longer. No one bothered to question the safety of asbestos and whether mesothelioma cancer could become a problem.

In the early days of using asbestos, military and civilians were unaware of the dangers of asbestos and mesothelioma -nor it's long term effects. Class action lawsuits have come out years later but the numbers of people exposed early on in the merchant marines and other companies are huge. The equipment they used to mix and asbestos was not safety driven and thus - many people, including my Dad dies years later because of this hazardous and poisoning material. Mesothelioma is a deadly lung cancer and the use of this product was no doubt a contributing cause.

We started getting settlement checks from law firms handling the cases against the contractors, companies and manufacturers as we have been included in several class action meso lawsuits. My father was not alive when this began. He died 2 years prior but we did not have to do anything. Maritime lawyers and firms have been handling the cases on behalf of the estates of thousands of merchant marines, navy shipmen, factory workers, ship builders and more.

There are hundreds of ongoing lawsuits and cases involving people who are sick, and the families of those who died. Some of these cases dealt with people and contractors from 60 years ago or longer. Many of these companies are out of business, bankrupt or other, so the cases may not be going anywhere in some instances.

Since asbestos was not really considered poisonous back then and since there were many variable of products used, proving liability on a company can prove a tough one. But documents still exist and meso asbestos victims are getting their restitution over time.

Families who had loved ones who got sick and maybe even died due to meso or asbestos exposure are finally getting their settlements, if they are part of these class action suits. Family members should seek out a specialist attorney in this matter if you feel you are due a Mesothelioma settlement.




About the Author: