Exposure to asbestos can be incredibly harmful. This substance was used for many decades and can still be found in buildings and many everyday products. If a person develops an asbestos disease because of direct occupational exposure to asbestos at work or because of indirect para-occupational exposure with asbestos through a family member’s embedded clothing, the defendants responsible for the exposure can be held financially liable for the victim’s medical bills, income loss, suffering and other losses.
The attorneys at Brayton Purcell, L.L.P. have advocated on behalf of asbestos victims since 1984. Individuals who are diagnosed with mesothelioma, lung cancer, asbestosis, or other asbestos-related diseases are understandably shaken and eager to find out what medical and legal options are available to them. A mesothelioma and asbestos exposure lawyer at our office could provide support and understanding as well as legal advocacy. Call us today to learn more.
Asbestos has been used in thousands of products and in numerous workplaces. By the early 1900s, scientists and medical professionals began noticing a large number of early deaths and lung problems in asbestos mining towns and asbestos cloth factories. Great Britain made asbestosis a compensable work-related disease by the 1930s; the U.S. followed about 10 years later.
By 1928, it was well established in medicine, science, and industry that asbestos dust released from any asbestos-containing product caused asbestosis; by 1944 that it caused lung cancer; by 1960 that is caused mesothelioma; and by 1965 that it caused various other cancers. Yet, asbestos was not removed from most products until the late 1970s and 1980s, and still remains in many products even today.
Asbestos exposure can lead to serious, debilitating and often fatal diseases. These include mesothelioma, lung cancer, asbestosis, and pleural disease, and various other cancers, including but not limited to ovarian, colon/rectal, esophageal, kidney/renal, lymphoma, stomach/gastric, pharyngeal, laryngeal, tongue, tonsil, vocal cord, and bladder.
There is no “safe” level of asbestos exposure, and, depending on the individual and the particular disease, there usually is wide range of 5 to 60 years before an asbestos victim exhibits the first clinical asbestos disease symptoms.
Dangerously high levels of asbestos exposure have been found in various occupational settings, including construction sites, shipyards, refineries, factories, steel mills, paper mills, railroads, auto repair shops and mines. Potential asbestos exposure can also occur at schools, public buildings and even in your own home if asbestos products are disturbed or become damaged. Experts agree that families who have a loved one who works with asbestos outside the family home are at a heightened risk of developing an asbestos-related disease if they assisted with laundry or even greeted that individual each day as they arrived home from work.
For both legal and medical reasons, as soon as you become aware that you may have developed an asbestos-related disease or injury, you should get in touch with an attorney as soon as possible. A mesothelioma and asbestos exposure lawyer could help you to determine what your legal rights are and how they can best be protected. Call our office today to get started.
