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Report Confirms that Medical Debt Adds to Mesothelioma Patients’ Woes
When you’ve been diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma, the cost of medical care should be the least of your worries. Unfortunately, the specialists and state-of-the-art technology required to treat this rare, asbestos-related disease come with astronomical price tags, and the bills pile up quickly. A report published in this month’s JAMA Network Open concludes that high medical debts
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Report Confirms What’s Long Been Known: Asbestos Bans Work to Prevent Mesothelioma
A study conducted by Spanish epidemiologists and occupational health experts has reached a conclusion long assumed by mesothelioma victims: the best way to protect others from getting the fatal disease, or any other asbestos-related illness, is to enact a ban on the use of the carcinogenic material.
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Drug Company Identifies Protein that Makes Mesothelioma More Susceptible to Treatment
Though chemotherapy is effective against many forms of cancer, the deadly asbestos-related form of the disease known as malignant mesothelioma has proven resistant to the protocol, leaving patients facing a grim prognosis. A California-based drug company is focusing on a protein that makes mesothelioma cells more susceptible to chemotherapy, and recently announced success in its
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Woman’s Asbestos-related Lung Cancer Blamed on Second-Hand Exposure
A lawsuit making its way through the Louisiana court system is profiling how mesothelioma and other deadly diseases can afflict people who have never personally worked with asbestos. Joyce Allen died of asbestos-related lung cancer that is being blamed on asbestos carried into her home on her husband Odell’s work clothes. Though the companies named
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Dutch Study Identifies Indicator of Keytruda Effectiveness for Mesothelioma
Immunotherapy treatments like Keytruda (pembrolizumab) offer significant hope for mesothelioma patients. The innovative medication has been shown to significantly extend survival beyond the typical period of less than a year, but the protocol has not been universally effective. In an effort to provide better treatment, Dutch researchers investigating the reason behind these disparities believe that
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Mesothelioma Study Yields Disappointing Conclusion about Adjuvant Radiation
The treatment options offered to mesothelioma patients largely depend upon the stage of their disease and their specific condition, but most are offered a combination of chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation. Though it is common for patients to be treated using radiation therapy after surgery to eradicate any cancer cells that might remain, a recent study
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Immunotherapy Treatment for Mesothelioma Receives FDA Clearance for Human Testing
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has cleared a first-in-human Phase 1 clinical trial of an immunotherapy drug that will target mesothelioma. Verismo Therapeutics, a Philadelphia-based biotechnology company, will begin testing its SynKIR-110 to assess its safety, its tolerability, and its preliminary effectiveness.
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Mesothelioma & Ovarian Cancer Victims to Be Heard by Third Circuit Court
After months of controversy and disappointing decisions, mesothelioma and ovarian cancer victims with cases pending against Johnson & Johnson will have their case heard by the Third Circuit. The court will be reviewing consumer giant Johnson & Johnson’ decision to place its mass tort liabilities for asbestos exposure into a newly formed entity, and then
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Breath Analysis Predicts Immunotherapy Success for Mesothelioma Patients
Though much remains to be known about treating and curing malignant mesothelioma, researchers are certain that the most effective treatments are those that are based on the patient’s unique biophysical profile. A recent study conducted at the University of Amsterdam confirmed a breath test’s predictive ability for assessing whether immunotherapy will be effective for individual
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Japanese Surgeons Introduce Test of Non-Incisional Pleurectomy/Decortication for Mesothelioma
Patients diagnosed with malignant pleural mesothelioma are quickly assessed to determine whether they are eligible for one of two methods of surgical resection of their tumors: either the lung-sparing pleurectomy with decortication or a more aggressive approach called extrapleural pneumonectomy, which removes the pleural membrane and the affected lung, as well as any other impacted
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Court Backs Asbestos Lung Cancer Victim in Dispute with Shipyard
Ora Jean Adams was diagnosed with asbestos-related lung cancer in May of 2019 after spending years laundering her pipefitter husband’s clothing. She filed suit against Avondale Shipyards, arguing that the company had failed to provide her husband with a safe place to work and for failing to warn that exposure to asbestos could lead to
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Coast Guard Veteran’s Mesothelioma Death Puts Heirs and Shipyard on Same Side of Argument
James Grant Gooding was diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma in January of 2020 and died of the disease just three months later. Shortly before his death he filed suit against multiple defendants including Avondale Shipyard, which in turn filed a crossclaim against vessel repair company Buck Kreihs so that they would share in any liability claims.
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Study Shows Adding Reprogramming Immunotherapy to Chemo Improves Mesothelioma Survival
While the most common treatment for malignant mesothelioma continues to be a combination of chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and surgery, immunotherapy is increasingly being viewed as a game changer. A recent study by Israeli company Enlivex has shown that its reprogramming immunotherapy drug Allocetra provides a substantial and statistically significant survival benefit when combined with the
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Asbestos Defendants Sue Each Other in Bid to Minimize Legal Liability
Malignant mesothelioma, asbestosis, and asbestos long cancer are all cruel and deadly diseases caused by exposure to asbestos. In the years since asbestos was identified as their cause, tens of thousands of individuals afflicted with these illnesses have filed suit against companies that knowingly exposed them to the toxic material, and those companies have been
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New Treatment May Help Mesothelioma Patients with Few Remaining Options
Immunotherapy has offered patients diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma hope for extended survival, but some patients that initially derive benefits from its use develop resistance and end up sicker. In response to this dynamic, researchers in the United Kingdom have explored combining the innovative treatment with a new experimental drug that they hope will support immunotherapy’s
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Asbestos Companies Point to Victim’s Smoking to Avoid Responsibility
It has been well established that exposure to asbestos causes malignant mesothelioma, asbestosis, lung cancer, and other deadly diseases. Despite this, asbestos companies offer numerous defenses and arguments against being held responsible when their products are named in personal injury lawsuits. In a recent case, multiple defendants argued that they should not be held responsible
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Iowa Appeals Court Reverses Mesothelioma Ruling, Forcing Brake Manufacturers Back to Court
A mesothelioma lawsuit that was dismissed by an Iowa district court has been reinstated by the state’s court of appeals. The decision will allow the victim and his wife to pursue justice against numerous asbestos companies, but more importantly confirms the importance of a recent Iowa Supreme Court decision that extends liability to those that
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Jury Agrees Employer Knew of Asbestos in Talc, Awards Mesothelioma Victim $3.8 Million
A Philadelphia jury ordered Washington Penn Plastic Company to pay a family $3.8 million in mesothelioma damages after learning the organization had knowingly exposed their loved one to asbestos. Daniel Rugg was just 61 years old when he was diagnosed with the rare and deadly form of cancer, and he died less than two years
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Washington State Court Revives Widow’s Mesothelioma Lawsuit Against Nissan Motors
Filing a mesothelioma lawsuit against an asbestos company is a quest for justice for those harmed by negligence, but the journey is often an emotional rollercoaster. Not only are victims frequently required to testify about the worst days of their loved ones’ lives, but the legal process can be filled with as many disappointments as
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Mesothelioma Fears Drive Asbestos-Contaminated Aircraft Carrier Back to Brazil
Malignant mesothelioma is caused by exposure to asbestos, a product that was once used extensively in shipbuilding. The toxic mineral has been blamed for countless cases of the deadly form of cancer in Navy veterans and shipyard workers, as well as maritime workers around the world. Knowledge of the dangers of asbestos has driven environmental
