Power Plant Mesothelioma Case May Be Just the Start for Mongolia
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Power Plant Mesothelioma Case May Be Just the Start for Mongolia

ByAlex Strauss

Mongolia has recorded its first-ever case of mesothelioma, but researchers say it is not likely to be the last. An article in the International ournal of Occupational and Environmental Health details the case of a 47-year old woman who developed mesothelioma after working for 28 years in a coal-burning thermal power plant. As in other parts of the world, asbestos has been widely used in Mongolian thermal power plants as an insulating material. Based on the prevalence of asbestos at these power plants, and the fact that more than 80 percent of mesothelioma cases worldwide have a history of asbestos exposure, the researchers recommend that Mongolia prepare for a significant rise in the disease. “We expect additional cases of mesothelioma,…

Mesothelioma Survival Case Encouraging for Current Patients
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Mesothelioma Survival Case Encouraging for Current Patients

ByAlex Strauss

A new case report out of Belgium has some encouraging news for mesothelioma patients. It recounts the case of a patient who not only survived multi-modality treatment for mesothelioma, but whose cancer disappeared completely. The 50-year-old patient was suffering from malignant pleural mesothelioma, a virulent lung-related cancer usually caused by inhalation of asbestos dust. The patient had the epithelial variety of the disease and a fairly contained tumor on the surface of the lung lining. Staging showed that the mesothelioma cells had not yet spread to the lymph nodes, which can be a precursor to metastasis (spread) to other parts of the body. Doctors at the University Hospital in Leuven, Belgium treated the patient with a tri-modality approach, including chemotherapy,…

Landlord’s Action Puts Tenants at Mesothelioma Risk
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Landlord’s Action Puts Tenants at Mesothelioma Risk

ByAlex Strauss

Property owners who want to remove asbestos are being urged to heed a lesson learned the hard way by a Massachusetts landlord last week. The state’s Attorney General has ruled that a property owner in Springfield, Massachusetts put her tenants, and possibly their neighbors, at risk for asbestos caused diseases like mesotheliomacancer by failing to follow state regulations regarding asbestos removal. Asbestos is the primary cause of mesothelioma, a rare malignancy of the mesothelial membrane that is often fatal. It was long used in the U.S. as a building material, and can still be found in the roofs, floors, walls and siding of tens of thousands of older homes and buildings. Asbestos often disintegrates as it ages, prompting many property owners…

Long-Term Mesothelioma Survival Possible with Tri-Modal Approach
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Long-Term Mesothelioma Survival Possible with Tri-Modal Approach

ByAlex Strauss

The case of a Peruvian woman treated for mesothelioma in Italy is more evidence that this rare cancer is not only increasingly treatable, but can even be survivable. Mesothelioma is an aggressive malignancy that spreads across the thin membranes that encase internal organs.  The most common type occurs in the pleura, the lining around the lungs. In most cases, the prognosis is poor; many patients are told they are unlikely to live out the year. But as treatment protocols improve, a growing number of mesothelioma patients are defying the odds and living much longer. A tri-modal approach including chemotherapy to shrink the mesothelioma, surgery to remove it, and radiotherapy to prevent its return has proven to be an effective strategy for…

Mesothelioma Claims Life of British Teen
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Mesothelioma Claims Life of British Teen

ByAlex Strauss

Britain’s youngest ever victim of malignant mesothelioma has died of the disease at the age of 18. Sophie Ellis was just 13 years old when she was diagnosed with mesothelioma, a cancer that is almost always associated with exposure to asbestos and typically strikes much older people. At the time, Ellis was told she had just three months to live, but with radiation, chemotherapy and radical surgery, she survived another five years. Mesothelioma is caused by exposure to asbestos. Asbestos was widely used until the 1980’s in a wide variety of industrial applications and construction products and is present in many older school buildings. Many mesothelioma victims contract the disease after working with asbestos containing products such as older car…

Navy Can Be Blamed for Mesothelioma Death
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Navy Can Be Blamed for Mesothelioma Death

ByAlex Strauss

A California Appeals Court says the U.S. Navy can legally be blamed for failing to protect one of its shipyard workers from the asbestos that eventually took his life. Ulysses Collins died of mesothelioma, a cancer caused by asbestos, in 2005 at the age of 65.  Collins had spent 30 years working as a welder and pipefitter in various California Naval shipyards.  Collins and his family brought suit against 17 companies, including Plant Insulation, one of the major manufacturers of the asbestos insulation heavily used by the Navy.  A jury found in the Collins’ favor and awarded them $10 million, but the jury questioned why the Navy was not named as one of the entities at fault. At the time, the…

Mesothelioma Survivor Defies Odds
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Mesothelioma Survivor Defies Odds

ByAlex Strauss

Recently there have been a number of articles written about Jon Matthews, the British man who was diagnosed with mesothelioma a little over two years ago. Mesothelioma is a type of cancer that is caused by exposure to asbestos. Apparently, Mr. Matthews had placed a bet with a bookie that he would live beyond 25 months. The bookie took the bet at 50 to 1 odds. When Mr. Matthews survived past this point, the bet paid off £5,000 on a £100 bet. First, we want to commend Mr. Matthews for proving his doctors wrong. But, why was 25 months chosen? Is this a magic number? According to Andy Nicholson of William Hill Bookmakers the bookie had consulted with “various medical…