Mesothelioma and You: How to Protect Your Family’s Future
If you or a family member is suffering from Mesothelioma through asbestos exposure, you may be entitled to seek justice and compensation for your pain and suffering, through a Mesothelioma claim settlement.Please call our San Antonio Asbestos and Mesothelioma lawsuit attorneys for legal counsel and a free consultation on your claim settlement. Our San Antonio and Austin Asbestos and Mesothelioma lawsuit attorneys will offer you and your family all the legal support and information you will need on seeking financial support for your treatment costs.
What Is Mesothelioma?
Mesothelioma is essentially a cancer of the mesothelium; the protective tissue lining that covers most of the body’s organs. The cancer usually develops in these lining membranes with mesothelial cells, such as the pleura – the sac lining the chest, the peritoneum, which lines the abdominal cavity, or the pericardium that lines the heart. However, most commonly Mesothelioma is detected in the pleura, lining the lung and chest cavity, and incidence of mesothelioma of the peritoneum is rare.
Mesothelioma and Asbestos
Individuals engaged in occupations that exposed them to asbestos are typically at risk for developing Mesothelioma and also other asbestos related diseases such as Asbestos Lung Cancer and Asbestosis. Mesothelioma is an aggressive cancer affecting over 3000 individuals per year, and the incidence of this condition is actually on the rise, owing to its long latency period. Mesothelioma typically strikes several decades (about 10-60 years) after an individual’s exposure to asbestos materials.
When mesothelioma strikes, the individual will often experience obvious physical symptoms of the condition such as:
- shortness of breath
- loss in weight and appetite
- chest pain from buildup of fluid in the pleural space
While Mesothelioma has been linked to prolonged exposure to asbestos particles, typically associated with work in the construction industry, several other work environments actually expose individuals to asbestos. These include:
- Automotive repair sites – especially involving brakes and clutches
- Industrial work sites
- Asbestos manufacturing
- Maritime and shipping
- Mining sites
- Oil refineries
- Power plants
- Railroads
- Sand or abrasive manufacturers
- Steel mills
And given that there really isn’t any “safe” level of exposure to asbestos, even brief and low level exposures to asbestos can make an individual susceptible to mesothelioma. The cancer is known to equally affect non-smokers as well.
How is Asbestos linked with Mesothelioma?
Asbestos is composed of highly fibrous minerals which can be easily separated into long and thin fibers. Its composition makes it durable, resistant to heat, and adequately strong and flexible to be spun and woven. Given Its flexibility and versatility, Asbestos is used across varied industrial purposes. It is essentially due to this durability and fibrous nature, that asbestos particles which get into the lung tissue remain for long periods of time and later trigger cancers such as Mesothelioma.
Today, there isn’t any known cure for mesothelioma. When the condition is detected, doctors will typically recommend a treatment plan including chemotherapy, radiation therapy or even radical surgery involving removal of the lung and /or the pleura.
Unfortunately, this disease was preventable. It is likely that many corporations which manufactured and profited from selling asbestos-containing products were actually aware of the hazards of asbestos exposure. There is information that most of these companies may have been aware of the risks as early as the 1920s, and that alternatives to asbestos fibers were available at that point in time. However, asbestos being cheap and easily sourced as an effective filler and binder, many corporations simply chose to continue manufacturing asbestos sheets and materials.
In effect, the corporations failed to share adequate warning information and educate workers on the hazards of asbestos exposure. While some warning information was shared starting from the 1960s, asbestos manufacturing continued across several decades into the 1980s, until a total ban was imposed in the United States and abroad.
Contact Our Office Today
Do you have questions about asbestos exposure or mesothelioma? Call the attorneys at Wayne Wright today at 210-888-8888 to discuss the details of your case. We can investigate the circumstances of your work and medical history to determine the likely cause of your cancer diagnosis. Your consultation with us is always free, and you pay no attorney fees unless we win your case!