-
Italian Court Sentences Billionaire to Twelve Years in Jail Over Mesothelioma Deaths
In the United States, companies blamed for others’ malignant mesothelioma face justice in civil trials seeking financial compensation, but other countries handle things differently. In Italy, companies’ owners are held responsible for workplace accidents or deaths, and are subject to both financial penalties and jail time. A Swiss billionaire ordered to pay hundreds of millions
-
Combining Chemotherapy with Immunotherapy Yields Positive Response in Peritoneal Mesothelioma
Malignant mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer that afflicts approximately 3,500 Americans every year. The cancer’s tumors usually appear in the lungs, but one in five patients is diagnosed with peritoneal mesothelioma, in which tumors arise in the abdominal cavity. This aggressive malignancy is notoriously hard to treat, but mesothelioma specialists in New York
-
Annual Cancer Meeting Highlights News on Mesothelioma Treatments
This year’s American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) annual meeting featured multiple presentations on developing treatments for malignant mesothelioma. Two of the most notable studies focused on the use of pembrolizumab, or Keytruda. The first looked at the drug in combination with chemotherapy as a first-line treatment, while the second examined its use for mesothelioma
-
New Lawsuit Accuses J&J Baby Powder of Causing Pericardial Mesothelioma
Despite efforts to hold asbestos-related lawsuits at bay while they seek bankruptcy protection, a new trial is pitting consumer giant Johnson & Johnson against a man who blames his pericardial mesothelioma on their iconic baby powder product.
-
Phase 3 Mesothelioma Study Shows Significant Improvement from Keytruda Plus Chemotherapy
Though a cure is the long-term goal, even adding months to patients’ overall survival is considered a victory when it comes to treating malignant mesothelioma. That’s why it’s such big news that Merck & Co.’s immunotherapy drug Keytruda delivered significant improvement in patient overall survival when combined with chemotherapy.
-
New York Court Denies Manufacturer’s Argument Against Liability for Plumber’s Mesothelioma
When plumber Ernest G. Smith was diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma, he and his wife filed suit against Cleaver-Brooks, Inc., the manufacturer of the cast-iron sectional boilers that he disassembled as part of his daily work. The company filed a motion to have the claim against them dismissed based on an argument that the boilers he would
-
Asbestos Company Facing Multiple Mesothelioma Claims Fails to Appear in Court
There are hundreds of asbestos companies that are frequently named in malignant mesothelioma lawsuits. Most fight claims of negligence, while some acknowledge their role and set up funds to compensate victims. In one unusual case, an asbestos mining company took a completely different path, opting to ignore the legal action against them entirely. This nonappearance
-
Hess Corporation Agrees to Settlement with Mesothelioma and Asbestos Victims on St. Croix
Following years of litigation, the Hess Corporation has agreed to settle hundreds of asbestos exposure lawsuits filed by victims of mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases on the island of St. Croix. The company will establish a $106 million trust for the benefit of victims, their surviving family members, and those who may be diagnosed in
-
Mesothelioma Study Shows Serious Side Effects from Nivolumab Predict Best Responses
In the last few years, researchers have made significant strides in the treatment of malignant mesothelioma. Though the disease is still considered fatal, the introduction of immunotherapy and other innovations have extended survival time for many, and improved quality of life. But much more needs to be learned and improved upon: a recent study shows
-
Citing Failures by Mesothelioma Victim’s Attorney, Judge Grants Hearing for New Trial
When a person is diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma, they are faced with many decisions, including whether to pursue justice from those responsible for their fatal illness and who to turn to for help should they choose to do so. In a recent case, a victim’s survivors filed a motion to have their motion for a
-
Asbestos Company Argues Against Mesothelioma Widow’s Multi-Million-Dollar Award
Rita Glenn’s husband Thomas died of malignant mesothelioma after having worked for years as an instrument technician at the Oconee Nuclear Station in South Carolina. The widow filed suit against several asbestos companies that she blamed for his death, and settled with most out of court. Fisher Controls International remained, and a jury returned a
-
Do Mesothelioma Clinical Trials Fall Short on Minority Representation?
Clinical trials are essential to finding the best treatments – and potentially a cure – for malignant mesothelioma. But for these research studies to accurately indicate the efficacy of a protocol, clinical trial participant demographics must reflect actual patient populations. A recent study indicated that when it comes to precision cancer studies, minorities may be
-
Woman’s Mesothelioma Lawsuit Accuses Husband’s Employer of Negligence
Linda Crossland was diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma in 2020, a devastating fact that she blames on multiple inadvertent exposures to asbestos during the course of her lifetime. She has filed suit against those she holds responsible, including her husband’s former employer, Woodward Design & Build LLC. Though Woodward filed a motion to have her case
-
British Study Suggests That Increase in Radiotherapy Dose May Prolong Survival
Malignant mesothelioma is a cruel disease that claims patients’ lives and causes tremendous pain in the process. British researchers report that while studying radiotherapy’s use in decreasing pain, they unexpectedly found that higher doses of the treatment extended patient survival time.
-
Can Marine Bacteria Help Prevent Future Mesothelioma Risk?
Malignant mesothelioma is caused by exposure to asbestos, a mineral that has been used for centuries in a variety of industrial and high-heat settings. Asbestos’ strength, its resistance to heat and flame, and its conductivity, have made it advantageous in numerous applications, but this is offset by the fact that it is a potent carcinogen.
-
Calling Ford’s Actions “Egregious,” Appeals Court Grants Mesothelioma Widow New Trial
After a highly questionable legal move by an attorney representing Ford Motor Company, an Illinois jury decided in favor of the automotive giant, saying they were not liable for a man’s malignant peritoneal mesothelioma death. But the man’s widow asked for and was granted a new trial based on the attorney’s actions, and despite Ford’s
-
Researchers Find Chemotherapy Spray Facilitates Surgery in Previously Inoperable Peritoneal Mesothelioma
For patients diagnosed with peritoneal mesothelioma, the best outcomes and longest survival times are achieved through a combination of surgical removal of the tumor followed by HIPEC, a heated bath of chemotherapy administered directly into the surgical site. Unfortunately, only a small percentage of patients are diagnosed in time for this procedure to be an
-
Despite Multiple Court Decisions and a Jury Verdict, Ford Still Fighting Mesothelioma Liability
Last March, U.S. District Judge Loretta C. Biggs approved a $275,000 jury award, plus interest, for mesothelioma widow Laura Walls. Walls had spent years pursuing justice on behalf of her husband Robie, who died of the disease after more than five decades of exposure to asbestos in truck brake parts. Despite three-and-a-half years of losing
-
New York Court Denies Talc Company’s Request to Dismiss Mesothelioma Claim
Jeffrey Campise died of malignant mesothelioma when he was just 42 years old. His family filed a personal injury lawsuit against the various companies whose talc he had used and been exposed to since infancy, accusing them of negligently and knowingly exposing him to asbestos. Among the defendant companies was talc supplier Whitaker, Clark, &
-
Asbestos-Riddled Hospitals and Schools Blamed for 150 Deaths in England
It has long been known that school and hospital buildings in the United Kingdom are heavily contaminated with asbestos, but the true costs of the problem were made painfully clear when a recent report revealed that nearly 150 of the country’s health and education workers have died from mesothelioma since 2017.
