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Mesothelioma Researchers Defeat J&J Talc Unit’s Libel Suit
A federal judge has handed a major win to three mesothelioma researchers, ruling that Johnson & Johnson’s talc liability subsidiary failed to prove they knowingly published false claims in a 2020 study linking cosmetic talc exposure to the deadly cancer.
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Philadelphia High School Shut as Asbestos Raises Mesothelioma Fears
With multiple faculty and staff diagnosed with mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases, the Philadelphia School District reacts quickly whenever asbestos is discovered. That’s why last week, just days before the start of the 2026-27 school year, more than 400 students and 90 staff members in the city’s Kensington High School have been forced to relocate…
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Asbestos Raises Mesothelioma Fears, Halts Construction of NYC Tower
New York City is famous for its towering skyscrapers, but many of the workers who constructed those marvels were later diagnosed with mesothelioma as a result of working with asbestos-contaminated building materials. It is with that history in mind that the New York City Department of Environmental Protection issued a stop-work order for the construction…
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Vi-Jon Files Bankruptcy After 400% Surge in Talc Mesothelioma Lawsuits
Vi-Jon LLC, a St. Louis-based manufacturer of private-label talc products sold at Walmart, Dollar General, Kroger, and Walgreens, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection to resolve hundreds of mesothelioma and asbestos injury claims. The company has proposed establishing a $25 million trust, saying that the move is necessary after a 400% surge in talc…
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Focused Ultrasound May Override Mesothelioma Resistance to CAR-T Cell Treatment
CAR-T cell therapy holds tremendous potential for treating cancer, but researchers have been challenged by the lack of markers the engineered immune cells can recognize in mesothelioma and other solid cancers. But in a study published in the journal Science Advances, scientists at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering report having developed a revolutionary system…
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Real-World Study Shows Chemotherapy after Immunotherapy Can Extend Mesothelioma Survival
According to a new study published in the journal Clinical Lung Cancer, researchers from Heidelberg University and 11 other German cancer centers have found that, in 72% of cases, mesothelioma patients who receive platinum and pemetrexed chemotherapy after their first-line immunotherapy treatment stops working can achieve a median overall survival of 11.5 months and disease…
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Libby, Montana Mesothelioma Patients Face Uncertain Future After Clinic Closure
For more than two decades, the Center for Asbestos-Related Disease (CARD) has been the lifeline for thousands of Libby, Montana residents diagnosed with mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases. Those patients suffer the long-term consequences of one of the largest public health disasters in American history, and when CARD closes at the end of August, they’ll…
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Delaware Court Blocks Asbestos Companies’ Bid to Preserve Mesothelioma Trust Records
Despite a legal effort from several asbestos companies to stop bankruptcy trusts from deleting decades of mesothelioma claims, the Delaware Supreme Court has dismissed the case, finding the companies failed to satisfy basic requirements for the legal remedy they sought.
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Bipartisan Senate Bill Would Ban All Asbestos to Prevent Mesothelioma
For decades, advocates have said that a comprehensive asbestos ban is urgently needed to prevent mesothelioma and the other related diseases that kill more than 40,000 Americans every year. Last week, U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and John Curtis (R-UT) introduced bipartisan legislation that would finally end all commercial and industrial uses of asbestos in…
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Court Grants Mesothelioma Group’s Petition for Release of White House Demolition Records
In a significant legal victory for mesothelioma advocates, a federal court has ordered three government agencies to respond to the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization’s long-pending Freedom of Information Act requests. For nine months, the group has sought information about asbestos handling during the White House East Wing demolition.
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Cryobiopsy Under Local Anesthesia Confirms Mesothelioma
For many patients suspected of having mesothelioma, confirming the diagnosis is complicated by their physical condition: Undergoing general anesthesia or conventional thoracoscopy is just too risky. Recently, Japanese researchers reported successfully diagnosing the rare form of cancer using pleural cryobiopsy under local anesthesia. This represents a valuable alternative and potentially quicker path to appropriate treatment.
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Mesothelioma and Ovarian Cancer Diagnoses Drive FDA Warning Letters Over Asbestos
In an action that underscores the ongoing mesothelioma and ovarian cancer risks posed by talc-containing products, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued nine Warning Letters to drug manufacturers for failing to properly test talc used as an ingredient in their products for asbestos contamination. The FDA is demanding heightened scrutiny of asbestos testing practices…
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Mesothelioma Victims’ Families Wait Years as Georgia-Pacific Bankruptcy Drags On
As a young man in the 1960s, Tommy Lineberger spent his summers working construction sites in North Carolina, never knowing that as he drove bulldozers and spackled walls, asbestos dust surrounded him and would eventually lead to mesothelioma. He died in 2018, two years after being diagnosed, and his family has been trying to get…
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Mesothelioma Patient Remains Cancer-Free Two Years After Single CAR T Cell Treatment
A mesothelioma patient treated with a single dose of AdAlta’s experimental CAR T cell therapy EW-001 has remained cancer-free for two years. The Complete Response—meaning no tumor could be detected following treatment — comes from a trial conducted in China, and is a result that’s almost never seen in patients with the rare and deadly…
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Uniroyal Files Bankruptcy to Resolve Mesothelioma Claims
In the face of overwhelming personal injury and wrongful death claims, including mesothelioma lawsuits, what remains of the once-iconic Uniroyal Tire and Rubber Company has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. If approved, the action will dissolve its operations and establish a settlement trust to resolve all outstanding claims. Over its 41-year history, the company…
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Study Shows Staggering End-of-Life Cancer Costs – Mesothelioma Among Highest
The costs of mesothelioma care are among the highest of any cancer treatment, and the realities of that financial burden have been clarified by a major new study led by researchers at the American Cancer Society and the National Cancer Institute. The researchers found that cancer-related medical costs average more than $121,000 per year during…
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J&J’s Repeated Appeal Extensions Delay Justice for Mesothelioma Victim
A mesothelioma victim in Connecticut has asked a state appeals court to dismiss Johnson & Johnson’s appeal of a $25 million asbestos verdict in his favor, arguing that the company has received five deadline extensions to file its opening brief. The company has missed each new deadline that it has been granted, while the terminally…
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CHIMERA Trial Tests Immunotherapy Plus Surgery for Mesothelioma
A new Phase 2 clinical trial called CHIMERA is testing whether adding the immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab to standard chemotherapy before and after surgery can dramatically improve outcomes in resectable pleural mesothelioma. The researchers hope that the approach will increase the rate of complete tumor elimination from approximately 5% with chemotherapy alone to 18% in patients…
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Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation Awards Record $850,000 in Research Grants
The Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation, the leading nonprofit organization dedicated to eradicating mesothelioma and improving patient outcomes, has announced an $850,000 investment in mesothelioma research. The organization is awarding three $250,000 research grants and an additional $100,000 grant, nearly tripling the funding it provided last year.
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J&J to Pay $5.5 Billion to Ovarian Cancer Victims
Facing thousands of ovarian cancer lawsuits and additional filings by mesothelioma victims, consumer giant Johnson & Johnson has announced it will pay $5.5 billion to approximately 69,000 of those blaming its baby powder and other talc products for their ovarian cancer. The landmark settlement closes a decade-long chapter of contentious litigation that saw three failed…
