Mesothelioma is a form of cancer that attacks the linings of the
lungs and the intestinal tract, and also the sac covering the heart. It
is also called epithelial mesothelioma, as it affects the membrane in
the pleura, the pericardium and the peritoneum. It is not lung-cancer
per se. The mesothelioma-lung cancer confusion has been there earlier.
Mesothelioma is merely a form of cancer that affects the lining covering
the lungs. It comes in three forms:
o Pleural mesothelioma
o Peritoneal mesothelioma
o Pericardial mesothelioma
Causes of Mesothelioma
The
primary cause of mesothelioma is exposure to asbestos. This can be
direct exposure at the work place, or secondary exposure (when the
victim is exposed to asbestos through coming in contact with someone who
has already been exposed to asbestos). Despite all the pain and the
loss that the workers faced, there was some hope in the form of legal
recourse. Workers started suing the plants they worked in, and soon the
legal battle against mesothelioma reached epic proportions. Even today,
there are around 3,000 cases of mesothelioma being diagnosed in the
United States every year. While the treatment is painful and not always
successful, these mesothelioma victims at least have the hope of
monetary compensation to help them fight mesothelioma.
The first
manifestations of mesothelioma were seen as early as the 1950s and the
1960s. At that time, the workers in plants and other work areas that
used asbestos in some form or the other were unaware of the lethal side
of asbestos. The management at these work areas - docks, industrial
plants, equipment manufacturers, and many more, the list is endless -
soon came to know of the adverse effects of asbestos. However, for some
reason they kept quiet about it. Their focus was on reduced costs and
profits, it seems, and they remained mum about the harmful effects that
asbestos could have on their workers. Asbestos, after all, had huge
advantages over other material, which was why it was used so much
irrespective of the genre of industry. This over the years proved to be a
very, very costly error on their part.
Mesothelioma Litigation - Did it Help?
The
implications of asbestos use are staggering, primarily because of the
range of products it is used in. From office buildings to toasters to
car brakes to shipyards, asbestos was used almost across the breadth of
the industrial sector. A publication in 1935 by the American Journal of
Cancer - Pulmonary Asbestosis: Carcinoma of the Lung in
Asbesto-Silicosis - first raised the suspicions of people from the
research and medical fields of the connection between the presence of
asbestos and the unusually high death rates and lung-related diseases in
the industrial sector. This connection was confirmed in 1955, and soon
the continued use of asbestos despite knowing about its deadlier side
became a legal nightmare for the industrial sector. Mesothelioma
litigation in the United States has enabled mesothelioma victims win
hundreds of thousands of dollars in lawsuits from their callous
employers. It has been one of the successes in the battle against
mesothelioma indirectly, and against the irresponsible attitudes of the
management of workplaes that used asbestos, directly.
The Legal Aspect of Mesothelioma
Over
the years, the legal benefits that mesothelioma victims have received
have been enormous. The symptoms of mesothelioma manifest much after the
initial inhalation of the asbestos fibers. Mesothelioma treatment is
also painful and expensive. The compensations awarded to them have
helped them at least cover their medical expenses. Nowadays there are
mesothelioma law firms - law firms that specialize in mesothelioma. They
have trained mesothelioma lawyers and mesothelioma attorneys. These
lawyers specialize in mesothelioma compensation cases.
It can
happen that a victim may shy away from legal recourse because they fel
that they do not have adequate financial support to pay the lawyer.
However, this is a scenario they need not worry about. All they have to
do is contact a mesothelioma support group, or a mesothelioma help
group. These are present all over the United States. The patient can
also go online and put a search for mesothelioma legal assistance cells
by typing mesothelioma and then typing the name of the state or area
they are from in the search field of the search engine they are using.
This is not a fixed rule - they can type it in any order. For example -
mesothelioma California, mesothelioma Texas, mesothelioma lawyer texas,
New York mesothelioma, California mesothelioma lawyer, etc.
How are Mesothelioma Lawyers so Successful?
One
of the basic things in awarding compensation is for the judge or the
jury to decide whether the harm done was intentional, or whether it was
the result of a choice the victim made, in simple terms. In many cases,
the circumstance of a victim is a result of a choice he or she made. For
example, in a smoking-related cancer case, the choice to smoke was made
by the victim. However, in the case of mesothelioma, the situation is
different. The circumstance of mesothelioma in the victim could have
been averted if only his employers had been more careful, had made him
aware about the risks the job entailed, and then let him choose, besides
providing him whatever protection required to prevent him from being
exposed to asbestos. This is one area that mesothelioma lawyers and
mesothelioma attorneys have been able to successfully work on.
After
the initial slew of mesothelioma cases and lawsuits, now laws are
firmly in place to safeguard the health interests of the worker.
Besides, in the event of someone actually suffering from mesothelioma,
there are some guidelines towards seeking legal redress for them as
well. Mesothelioma law is strict and helps provide fair verdicts in
mesothelioma-related compensation cases.
Guidelines for Mesothelioma Victims Seeking Legal Action
The
primary rule of thumb while filing a mesothelioma lawsuit is that it
has to be filed immediately on diagnosis of the disease. In fact, in
many of the states across the United States, mesothelioma laws
stipulating the timeframe within which a lawsuit can be filed are in
place. On diagnosis, you can contact a mesothelioma lawyer through your
local mesothelioma activists or mesothelioma group for more mesothelioma
information relating to lawsuits. The work of a mesothelioma lawyer or
mesothelioma attorney is not limited to just fighting your case. A
mesothelioma attorney usually has an extensive network of contacts -
other victims, mesothelioma case histories, good treatment facilities,
nature of treatment options available, in fact, for most
mesothelioma-related information. His specialization is a distinct
advantage over a lawyer who doesn't have too much of an idea about
mesothelioma.
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