A 67-year-old British mother of two died from mesothelioma after secondary childhood exposure to asbestos fibers on her father’s work clothes. According to a report from the woman’s local coroner, her illness and death can be traced back to fibers that transferred from her father’s clothing to her when she hugged him each day when he returned home for lunch, as well as to having helped her mother wash his contaminated clothing.
Mesothelioma Victim’s Secondary Exposure Linked to Hugs and Helping
Norfolk Coroner’s Court recently concluded that the cause of Elaine Ellery’s death last August was “industrial disease of mesothelioma” caused by asbestos exposure throughout her childhood. Mrs. Ellery had never worked with asbestos, and the coroner’s investigation revealed that her fatal exposure had occurred decades earlier, through her father’s contaminated work clothes.
According to a statement the mesothelioma victim gave before her death, her father had worked at a factory from 1949 until 1974. Every day, both he and she returned home for lunch — she from her elementary school and he from work, still wearing his work clothes. Elaine recalled greeting him eagerly. “I was very close to my dad, and as soon as he came home, I would go up to him and hug him,” she explained. Those embraces transferred asbestos fibers from her father’s clothing to Elaine, with additional exposure occurring when she helped her mother wash his contaminated work clothes.
Mesothelioma Exposure Continued During Factory Christmas Parties
Mrs. Ellery’s risk of mesothelioma was intensified during annual Christmas parties at her father’s workplace. “I was always excited to go there because there was a substance which looked like snow on the ground,” she recalled in her statement. “It was not snow, but had a similar appearance, and in hindsight, I believe it must have been asbestos on the ground from the factory’s operations.”
Ellery’s father died in 1983 at age 59 from an industrial disease resulting from his own asbestos exposure, and she was diagnosed with mesothelioma in October 2024, more than 40 years after her childhood exposure ended. The case makes clear both the long latency of the deadly disease. and how secondary asbestos exposure through contaminated work clothing continues claiming lives decades later.
If you or someone you love has been diagnosed with mesothelioma or another asbestos-related disease, the Patient Advocates at Mesothelioma.net are here to help. Contact us today at 1-800-692-8608 to learn more.
