After asbestos was linked to the development of malignant mesothelioma, its use diminished dramatically. But legacy asbestos used decades ago continues to pose a threat. Despite stringent regulations for handling asbestos, negligence continues to place people at risk. This week Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul took legal action against the owners and operators of a
Any building built before the 1980s, whether residential, commercial, or industrial, may have been built using asbestos-contaminated materials. The good news is that asbestos is generally safe if it’s undisturbed. But the minute that asbestos is sanded, sawed, torn, or damaged in any other way, its microscopic fibers are released, and you run the risk
The Quigley Company manufactured refractory products used in a variety of high-heat settings. Many of the products that it sold between the 1940s and 1970s contained asbestos, the mineral that has been linked to malignant mesothelioma, asbestos-related lung cancer, asbestosis, and other serious illnesses. The company was named in hundreds of thousands of personal injury
The Keene Corporation began as a producer of heat-sealed plastic packaging, but expansion saw it acquire new companies, including manufacturers of fireproofing material that contained asbestos. With a list of 1,415 job sites where Keene asbestos-contaminated products were used, the company was named in over 11,000 asbestos personal injury lawsuits. In 1993, Keene filed for
Kaiser Gypsum Company, Inc., and its parent company Hanson Permanente Cement, Inc., were manufacturers and sellers of several products containing asbestos. Those products sickened many workers. With 14,000 pending lawsuits and an unknown number of future claims, the companies sought Chapter 11 relief in 2016. Kaiser Gypsum Company History and Asbestos Industrialist Henry John Kaiser
Asbestos was once used to make fire-resistant and fire-retardant items, including fire-resistant clothing for firefighters, heat-resistant gloves and aprons for welders, insulation, and spray-on fireproofing. The dangers of breathing in asbestos fibers from these items through occupational exposure, as well as during renovation and demolition, have been linked to asbestos-related diseases like asbestosis, asbestos-related lung cancer,
Papermaking and pulp represent one of the largest industries in the world, and the United States accounts for the majority of the world’s consumption of paper. Papermaking has played an important economic and social role in U.S. history, but its contributions came at a cost to paper mill workers exposed to dangerous levels of asbestos. Paper
Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard is notable for both its historic role in the country’s entry to World War II and as a source of asbestos exposure. Still a functional military facility today, the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard is also a Superfund site where investigations and cleanup activities are ongoing. Some military personnel and civilians who
Papermaking and pulp represent one of the largest industries in the world, and the United States accounts for the majority of the world’s consumption of paper. Papermaking has played an important economic and social role in U.S. history, but its contributions came at a cost to paper mill workers exposed to dangerous levels of asbestos contamination.
Radiation oncologists are integral members of multidisciplinary medical teams that treat mesothelioma. Working in coordination with thoracic surgical oncologists and medical oncologists, these highly skilled specialists create sophisticated therapeutic plans that target and regulate doses of high-energy radiation to kill cancer cells. Radiation oncologists who treat mesothelioma have deep knowledge of the cancer’s biology and