ASBESTOSIS AND ASBESTOS-RELATED CANCERS
A very large part of Mr. Acree’s practice focuses on the diseases of asbestosis
and asbestos-related cancers. Most of these cases involve workers (such as pipe
fitters, welders, sheet metal mechanics, electricians, and construction workers)
who were exposed to the hazards of asbestos in industrial settings. Benefits may
be obtained from the employer (typically through workers’ compensation), the
land owner and/or the manufacturer of the asbestos-containing products. First,
what is asbestosis?
WHAT IS ASBESTOSIS?
Asbestosis is defined as “a characteristic fibrotic condition of the lung caused
by the inhalation of asbestos dust.” N. C. Gen. Stat. §97-62. When an individual
breathes asbestos dust, the normal defense mechanisms of the nose, throat and
lung prevent some of the asbestos bodies from lodging in the lung. Many asbestos
fibers get by these early defense mechanisms and lodge in the lower part of the
lung where they are attacked by protective white blood cells which engulf the
asbestos fibers. Some of these cells are injured and altered by the asbestos
fibers. The injured cells then release chemicals that induce the lung tissue to
form fibrotic scars. Wilner, Asbestos Medicine on Trial, p. 14 (1995). When the
lung is sufficiently scarred, an individual cannot process the oxygen that he or
she breathes in. As a result, the individual will experience shortness of breath
on exertion and in severe cases will have shortness of breath even at rest.
Roggli, Pathology of Asbestos-Associated Diseases (1992).
In 1930, a few years before asbestosis was listed as an occupational disease by
the North Carolina Workers’ Compensation Act, Dr. E.R.A. Mereweather performed
the first epidemiological study on asbestos workers. “This study established
beyond all reasonable doubt that excessive exposure to asbestos fibers can
produce asbestosis. Searcy-Alfred, A Guide to Toxic Torts, §20.01 (23) [a]
(1999). Dr. Mereweather described the effects of asbestosis as follows: “[t]his
disease, insidious in its onset, steadily advances with but faint warning of its
progress; inexorably it cripples the essential tissue of the lung, yet for a
considerable period causes almost no inconvenience to the worker. As time goes
on, however, the lungs find more and more difficulty re-aerating the blood and
breathing is quickened on slight exertions.” Mereweather, The Occurrence of
Pulmonary Fibrosis and Other Pulmonary Afflictions in Asbestos Workers, J.
Indust. Hyg., 12:198-222, 239-257 (1930).
ASBESTOS-RELATED CANCERS
Innumerable studies and papers have been presented concerning the health hazards
of asbestos. It has been estimated that over 50,000 cancer cases per year are
caused by exposure to asbestos. Bridboard, Estimates of the Fraction of Cancer
in the United States Related to Occupational Factors, United States Department
of Health Education and Welfare, September 15, 1978. There are many types of
cancer that occur in the digestive and respiratory tracts that are known to be
caused by exposure to asbestos. Typically, such cancers include lung cancer,
throat cancer, esophageal cancer, laryngeal cancer, colon cancer and
mesothelioma—a cancer in the lining of the lung or the stomach. It is not
necessary that the exposure to asbestos be the only possible cause for the
cancer in order for there to be a viable claim for benefits. This is because
asbestos is a carcinogen (i.e., cancer-causing agent) which acts
“synergistically” (or in a multiplicative fashion) with other known carcinogens,
such as cigarette smoking, to cause many types of cancer.
WHAT BENEFITS ARE AVAILABLE IF I HAVE ASBESTOSIS OR AN
ASBESTOS-RELATED CANCER?
Benefits may be available from the worker’s employer (either through workers’
compensation insurance or self insurance), from the manufacturers of the
asbestos-containing products and/or from the premises owner where the exposure
to the asbestos occurred. These benefits include monetary benefits, medical
benefits and even benefits for family members who may be required to take care
of an asbestos-disease victim. There are very specific and often strict time
deadlines required for filing claims for asbestosis and asbestos-related cancers
so it is best to contact an attorney as soon as you become aware that you or a
loved one has been exposed to the hazards of asbestos or has been diagnosed as
having asbestosis or a cancer that may be attributable to asbestos exposure.
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