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Plaintiff Allowed To File An Asbestos-Mesothelioma Lawsuit Years After Filing An Earlier Asbestos Lung Cancer Case

December 31, 2012 by Leave a Comment

Some States Have A “Two Disease” Or “Separate Disease” Rule That Permits The Second Case To Go Forward

The Daley v. A.W. Chesterton opinion which was handed down by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in 2012 discusses the so-called “two disease” or “separate disease” rule.  In that case an individual diagnosed with mesothelioma was allowed to file a new asbestos lawsuit even though he had previously sued and recovered for asbestos-related lung cancer in a separate case about ten years earlier.

The “two disease” or “separate disease” rule, as applied in this Pennsylvania Supreme Court opinion, permitted the plaintiff to file a new lawsuit for a malignant asbestos-related disease, i.e., mesothelioma, even though he had previously filed a legal action for a different malignant asbestos-related disease, i.e., lung cancer, based on this reasoning:

  1. the second or subsequent lawsuit is based on a separate and distinct disease;
  2.  which was not known to the plaintiff back at the time when his first action was filed; and,
  3.  the asbestos-mesothelioma “second” case was filed within the applicable statute of limitations period.

Only certain states follow the “two disease” or “separate disease” rule, so it is important to check with an experienced asbestos attorney if you have a situation where mesothelioma is diagnosed after there had been an earlier asbestos lawsuit involving lung cancer or asbestosis.

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Researchers Describe The Development Of A New Early Diagnosis Test That Can Identify Malignant Mesothelioma In Asbestos-Exposed Individuals

December 20, 2012 by Leave a Comment

Malignant mesothelioma is caused by exposure to asbestos dust and fibers.  Unfortunately, is a highly lethal disease because most cases of mesotheilioma (or “meso”) are diagnosed at a clinically advanced stage.

One way of improving outcomes for patients with malignant mesothelioma is finding methods of early diagnosis in people at risk of developing because of occupational and other exposure to asbestos.   At present, however, the primary methods to diagnose malignant mesothelioma involve expensive imaging tests, and invasive sampling of pleural tissue as well fluid obtained from patients suspected to have mesothelioma.

A recent health news article, “Biomarkers detected mesothelioma after asbestos exposure”, published December 10, 2012 online by HemOnc Today, reports a promising development as regards early diagnosis techniques.

Essentially, this new diagnosis test, or assay, consists of a 13-protein biomarker test that uses Slow Off-rate Modified Aptamers (SOMAmers) to selectively quantify protein biomarkers in serum samples.  The researchers established that “the SOMAmer biomarker panel for malignant mesothelioma is high-throughput, accurate and reliable”, according to the HemOnc Today article.

In more detail, from this December 2012 article:

A novel blood-based proteomics assay identified malignant pleural mesothelioma in individuals exposed to asbestos, according to study findings published in PloS One.

“In the next 25 years, it is estimated that the diagnosis of [malignant mesothelioma] will increase 5% to 10% each year until 2020 in most industrialized countries, at a cost of $200 billion in the US and nearly $300 billion worldwide,” Rachel M. Ostroff, PhD, clinical research director at SomaLogic in Boulder, Colo., and colleagues wrote. “The interval between asbestos exposure and the development of [malignant mesothelioma] ranges from 25 to 71 years, yet this disease is often fatal within 1 year of diagnosis. The large gap between asbestos exposure and disease lends itself to surveillance in the high-risk population with the goal of detecting early, treatable disease.”

Be assured that we will continue to watch for additional possibly significant advances as regard the diagnosis of mesothelioma at an earlier stage than has been the case —  for the reason that early diagnosis is critical to the successful treatment of mesothelioma.

 Mesothelioma, Asbestos, and Legal Compensation: Basic Facts

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Secondhand Asbestos Exposure, Or Household / Indirect Exposure To Asbestos, Might Give Rise To An Asbestos Lawsuit For Legal Compensation

December 11, 2012 by Leave a Comment

Family members of workers who worked with or around asbestos-containing products may have had so-called secondhand asbestos exposure — also called household or indirect exposure to asbestos dust.  For example:

  • A wife washing the asbestos worker’s dusty clothing; or, even more unexpectedly,
  • The children giving a welcome-home hug each day to their father while he was still in his work clothes laden with asbestos dust.

Often times it can be determined how the asbestos exposure during childhood happened and, in turn, an asbestos lawsuit for legal compensation can be filed on behalf of the mesothelioma victim or her surviving family.

The primary issue in secondary exposure asbsestos-mesothelioma lawsuits is whether there was a legal duty to warn going from the asbestos worker’s employer to the secondarily exposed person, such as the worker’s wife, in the state(s) where the person had household or indirect exposures to asbestos dust.

As of October 2012, 16 states have court decisions addressing this basic legal liability issue in asbestos-mesothelioma secondary exposure lawsuits.

The following states permit secondary exposure claims:  Illinois; New Jersey; Louisiana; Tennessee; California; and, Washington.

And these states do not allow these types of asbestos-mesothelioma lawsuits: Delaware; Ohio; Kansas; Iowa; Kentucky; Michigan; Texas; New York; Georgia; and, Maryland.

The remaining 34 U.S. states have not had a final court ruling, yet, about whether a person diagnosed with mesothelioma can file a secondhand asbestos lawsuit and hold an employer of their husband or father, i.e., the asbestos worker,  legally responsible for that asbestos cancer.

 Mesothelioma, Asbestos, and Legal Compensation: Basic Facts

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There Is No Standard Treatment Regimen For Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma, But There Is Now A Move Away From Radical Surgery Towards Alternative Therapies

November 30, 2012 by Leave a Comment

New European Medical Study Indicates That Some Non-Surgical Options Such As Chemotherapy And Pleurectomy / Decortication Can Extend Meso Patients Survival Times

The November 21, 2012 edition of the medical journal Interactive CardioVascular and Thoracic Surgery (ICVTS) included an article about the evolving treatment approach for patients diagnosed with malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM), “Multimodal therapy of malignant pleural mesothelioma: is the replacement of radical surgery imminent?”

From the Abstract from this new article concerning options for treatment that mesothelioma (often called “meso”) patients may have at the present time, we get this summary information:

OBJECTIVES  Malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) remains an aggressive thoracic malignancy associated with poor prognosis. There is no standard treatment regimen, and particularly, the impact of radical surgery remains controversial….

CONCLUSIONS  Chemotherapy and pleurectomy/decortication can extend the survival time of patients with MPM remarkably. The adequate treatment options have to be tailored to the specific particular needs of each patient considering histological subtype, tumour stage and patient’s individual functional assessment as well as comorbidity.

For this recent medical study, 61 patients with histologically confirmed malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) treated at a single European medical center over the prior ten years were considered.  In terms of the mesothelioma, or meso, treatments received, this was the breakdown:

  • Surgery as the first treatment modality was performed in 44 patients (72.1%);
  • Pleurectomy/decortication was done in 28 cases (45.9%);
  • Extended pleurectomy/decortication was performed in 13 (21.3%);
  • Extrapleural pneumonectomy in 3 (4.9%);
  • Additional intraoperative photodynamic therapy was administered in 20 patients(30.5%);
  • 34 underwent chemotherapy (55.7%); and,
  • 12 had radiotherapy (19.7%).

The study authors pointed out that, unfortunately,  the mean survival time for this group of 61 mesothelioma patients was 18.3 months.

Hopefully, there will soon be further treatment advances and medical studies that will serve to produce a significant increase in survival time for patients with a pleural mesothelioma diagnosis.

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  Mesothelioma, Asbestos, and Legal Compensation: Basic Facts

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Asbestos Lung Cancer Cases: Number Of Filed Lawsuits Increasing Across The U.S.

November 25, 2012 by Leave a Comment

In Recent Years And Going Forward, Malignant Claims Such As Mesothelioma And Asbestos-Related Lung Cancer Will Continue To Lead Asbestos Litigation New Filings

While malignant mesothelioma (“meso”) claims get the most attention in the ongoing asbestos litigation, the asbestos lung cancer lawsuits are significant legal claims, also.  These “other” asbestos-related cancer cases have been increasing in number over recent years and that trend is expected to continue in the U.S. over the next several years.

According to the American Lung Association Fact Sheet, in 2012 an estimated 226,160 new cases of lung cancer will be diagnosed.

Where that diagnosis was made in a worker who might have been exposed to asbestos 20 years or more ago, it is likely that this past asbestos exposure played a role in causing the asbestos worker’s lung cancer.

This asbestos “link” to the lung cancer would be present even if the worker smoked cigarettes insofar that the combination of smoking and asbestos exposure acts in synergy to greatly multiple the risk of that worker developing lung cancer.  Put differently, there is a greater risk of lung cancer when there is asbestos exposure for a worker who also smoked — compared to what the lung cancer risk would be in a person who just smoked cigarettes or was just exposed to asbestos in the past.

In the leading asbestos filing jurisdictions of New York City, Philadelphia, Madison County, Illinois, and California there has been a marked increase in the number of asbestos lawsuits filed that involve lung cancer — with this upward trend is seen less obviously all across the country.

And, in fact, we have been getting a growing number of Case Evaluation submissions for possible asbestos-related lung cancer lawsuits this past year.

We have more information about asbestos lung cancer and mesothelioma available at out Asbestos-Mesothelioma.com web site.

See also the Lung Cancer Awareness page at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention web site.

 Mesothelioma, Asbestos, and Legal Compensation: Basic Facts

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Amatuximab: FDA Approves New Drug For Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma Treatment In November 2012

November 13, 2012 by Leave a Comment

The FDA has approved Amatuximab to treat patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma, the most common form of mesothelioma (sometimes referred to as “meso” for short).

In more detail, Amatuximab (MORAb-009) is a monoclonal antibody designed to target mesothelin, a cell surface glycoprotein associated with cell adhesion that is overexpressed in certain types of cancer, including:

  • mesothelioma;
  • lung adenocarcinoma;
  • epithelial ovarian cancer; and,
  • pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

Amatuximab was given “orphan” status by the FDA because it is a new therapeutic agent which treats a disease that affects fewer than 200,000 patients in the United States.   It is estimated there will be 2500 to 9300 new cases of mesothelioma diagnosed each year over the next couple of decades here in the U.S., alone.

According to the most recent data from the National Cancer Institute’s Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) Program, between 2000 and 2008, the 5-year survival rate for patients with malignant mesothelioma was 7.0% .

From a November 12, 2012 article, “FDA Grants Orphan Drug Status to Amatuximab for Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma”, published online by OncLive:

“We are very pleased to receive orphan drug designation for amatuximab for the potential treatment of malignant pleural mesothelioma,” said Julia Maltzman, MD, Senior Director of Clinical Development at Morphotek Inc., a subsidiary of amatuximab manufacturer Eisai Inc., in a statement. “Ultimately, this antibody has the potential to provide an additional treatment option for patients suffering from an extremely serious disease.”

Results of a multicenter phase II clinical trial of amatuximab in combination with a chemotherapy regimen of pemetrexed and cisplatin were presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) meeting earlier this year.  See  ”Amatuximab, a chimeric monoclonal antibody to mesothelin, in combination with pemetrexed and cisplatin in patients with unresectable pleural mesothelioma: results of a multicenter phase II clinical trial.”, Hassan R, Jahan TM, Kindler HL, et al.,  J Clin Oncol. 2012;30(suppl; abstr 7030).

We will continue to watch for newly approved treatments for mesothelioma here in the U.S. and elsewhere around the world.

 Mesothelioma, Asbestos, and Legal Compensation: Basic Facts

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The Number Of Malignant Mesothelioma Cases Diagnosed Each Year In The U.S. Is At An All Time High

November 8, 2012 by Leave a Comment

Unfortunately There Will Be An Estimated 2500 to 9300 New Cases Of Mesothelioma Annually Over The Next 20 Years

According to the following sources and projection models, the number of newly diagnosed asbestos-mesothelioma cases is at an all time high and this alarming situation will likely remain with us for the next 40 years or so.

In more detail, first, it is forecasted that anywhere from 2,500 to 9,300 new cases of malignant mesothelioma (“meso”) —  mostly pleural mestothelioma, but also patients diagnosed with peritoneal and pericardium mesotheliomas — will be diagnosed in the U.S. annually over the next 20 plus years.  See:

Projected Excess Deaths from All Asbestos-Related Cancers in Selected Occupations and Industries, United States, 1965-2029, Based on Study by Nicholson et al. (1982); and Ries LAG, Melbert D, Krapcho M, Mariotto A, Miller BA, Feuer EJ, Clegg L, Horner MJ, Howlader N, Eisner MP, Reichman M, Edwards BK (eds).

SEER Cancer Statistics Review, 1975-2004, National Cancer Institute. Bethesda, MD, http://seer.cancer.gov/csr/1975_2004/, based on November 2006 SEER data submission (last visited 10/12/2012).

Second, the number of newly diagnosed mesothelioma cases is not predicted to return to background levels until 2055.  See:

Bertram Price and Adam Ware, Mesothelioma Trends in the United States: An Update Based on Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program Data for 1973 through 2003. Am. J. of Epidemiol 2004; 159:107-112

We will continue to monitor the medical literature for other sources of similar information concerning asbestos-mesothelioma diagnosis statistics, i.e., the number of new meso cases projected per year in the United States.

 Mesothelioma, Asbestos, and Legal Compensation: Basic Facts

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The Standard of Care for Mesothelioma Continually Evolves As New Treatments For Mesothelioma Are Investigated

November 1, 2012 by Leave a Comment

This short video presentation (1.5 minutes) from September 2011 by Paul Baas, MD, PhD, a thoracic oncologist in the Division of Medical Oncology of the Netherlands Cancer Institute in Amsterdam, discusses how and why the standard of care for mesothelioma patients is constantly evolving.

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News Report Of Two Mesothelioma Deaths Show Similarities And Differences In These Types Of Asbestos Cases

October 31, 2012 by Leave a Comment

An October 30, 2012 article, “Two more die from “dreadful” mesothelioma”, published by a newspaper in the United Kingdom (UK) serves to show how asbestos-mesothelioma cases can be very similar yet very different in their sets of relevant facts.

Keith Ison, 62, was diagnosed with mesothelioma in March 2012 and died on July 6, just three months after his diagnosis.  An autopsy found a tumor encasing his right lung and tiny fibers of asbestos were found in the lung.  Mr. Ison had told doctors he was exposed to asbestos when working as a builder for a company between 1971 and 1973.

Dennis Grimsey, 81, was diagnosed with mesothelioma in April 2012 and died about three months, on July 8.  An autopsy revealed his left lung was encased in a tumor and asbestos fibers were found in the lung.  However, in this instance, Mr. Grimsey had not been aware he had been exposed to asbestos, although he said he had worked briefly in the construction industry many years earlier.

The similarities for these two asbestos-mesothelioma death cases are:

  • relative brief period of asbestos exposure;
  • the asbestos exposure was many years before the mesothelioma diagnosis; and,
  • death within a few months after the mesothelioma was diagnosed.

The differences are:

  • the age at death: 62 years old vs. 81 years old; and,
  • one individual recalled working with or around asbestos-containing products, while the other was unaware of when or where he had been exposed to asbestos.

Even though these mesothelioma case reports come out of the UK, they are instructive as to how asbestos causes mesothelioma in people many years after their asbestos exposure, whether they knew how they were exposed to asbestos or not.

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Photodynamic Therapy (PDT) After Surgery May Be One Of New Options For Treatment Of Pleural Mesothelioma

October 29, 2012 by Leave a Comment

A recent medical journal article, “Photodynamic therapy for malignant pleural mesothelioma.”, which was published in the October 1, 2012 edition of Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network discusses how photodynamic therapy (PDT) after surgery may be one of the preferred treatment options for malignant pleural mesothelioma.

From the Abstract for this relatively new medical article concerning the treatment of mesothelioma:

Surgery is the treatment option most likely to be associated with prolonged remission in patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma. However, it remains investigational and must always be combined with other modalities to treat the microscopic disease that remains after the most aggressive operations. Improvements in quality of life for appropriate patients with this rare yet incurable cancer may be obtained with less drastic lung-sparing surgical procedures along with intraoperative use of photodynamic therapy (PDT). Very encouraging survival results have been obtained with the combination of surgery and PDT, which requires the well-orchestrated collaborative effort of an extensive team of professionals, from thoracic surgeons and radiation oncologists to basic science researchers. Multi-institutional trials are necessary to duplicate these early findings and shed more light on the tumor-directed immune response of this surgically based multimodal treatment.

We will continue to monitor developments in mesothelioma treatment options.

 Mesothelioma, Asbestos, and Legal Compensation: Basic Facts

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