A Real Life Super Hero: Janelle Bedel's Fight Against Mesothelioma Cancer Inspires 'Wonder' Among Meso Community

Homegrown social media campaign grows rapidly in support of Wonder Woman with mesothelioma

Today is Wonder Woman Day in Rushville, Indiana. The town’s mayor made the declaration Monday in honor of Rushville resident and mesothelioma patient Janelle Bedel. A portion of today’s sales from the Rushville Hardee’s will benefit Janelle who plans to donate the funds to the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization.

The declaration is the culmination of an outpouring of community support for Janelle and her family after they announced her decision to enter hospice. Since then, thousands of people have changed their Facebook profile picture to the Wonder Woman logo in honor Janelle and her work to raise awareness of mesothelioma.

Janelle was diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2007 at the age of 31. Her son was 4. Mesothelioma is a rare cancer caused by exposure to asbestos. Sadly, its typical survival rate is 6 to 14 months. Janelle underwent multiple procedures, surgeries and chemotherapy to extend her life. Her local paper followed her story and the town rallied to support her.

After her diagnosis, Janelle bought a Wonder Woman shirt at her local Goodwill. She and her family adopted it as their own symbol of resilience and strength beyond that of just the average woman.  Janelle took her fight against mesothelioma to the streets and became a hero to the mesothelioma community in the process.

She organized several events to raise awareness of mesothelioma including two Miles for Meso events that raised thousands of dollars for research. In addition, she also helped lobby on Capitol Hill for a national Mesothelioma Awareness Day. Along with her effort and many others, the U.S. Congress has since officially recognized Sept. 26 as National Mesothelioma Awareness Day. 

In the six years since her diagnosis, she has not only beaten the odds, but has inspired thousands to continue advocating for a mesothelioma cure and an asbestos ban.

To honor Janelle’s heroic fight against mesothelioma, the Simmons Firm has changed its Facebook profile picture to the Wonder Woman logo. She is a huge inspiration to us, and we encourage everyone to join us in honor of Janelle and her mission to continue to raise awareness of mesothelioma and the dangers of asbestos exposure.

 Click here to learn more about Janelle's support of ADAO.

Click here to read about Wonder Woman Day and Janelle's inspiring story.

Asbestos and Mesothelioma Updates: May 2013

The mesothelioma lawyers at the Simmons Firm have brought together recent headlines highlighting the dangers of asbestos exposure and new information concerning mesothelioma research from throughout the nation and world.

• Asbestos removed as athletes swim on Asbestos is being removed from the outside of the Australian Institute of Sport Aquatic Centre as the country’s elite swimmers continue to practice inside the building. Daily tests are being conducted to make sure there are no asbestos fibers in the air around the worksite.

• Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization named as finalist for 2013 American Business Awards The organization that serves as the voice of asbestos victims was named as a finalist in the Company of the Year – Non-Profit category. The winners will be recognized at the awards ceremony on June 17 in Chicago.

• On-site asbestos detector offers promise of better workplace safety Currently, the most common way to detect toxic asbestos fibers is to filter the air. This new, portable, real-time technology detects asbestos fibers using laser-based light and a scattering technique.

• Asbestos removal, demolition contracts for Coultrap OK’d Asbestos-containing material was found in the former Coultrap School in the Geneva school district. The project will cost $140,000 to remove the asbestos, and $545,900 to tear the building down.

Coldwater Creek: St. Louis Magazine Op-Ed Piece Reflects Outrage of Sick Residents

A compelling opinion piece about the contamination of Coldwater Creek in North St. Louis County was published in the June edition of St. Louis Magazine. On newsstands this past week, “The Poisoned Children of Coldwater Creek” by Ray Hartmann is critical of the media and the Missouri state government.

“But if the media is unhelpful, Missouri state government is worse. Apparently in response to some public outcry, the Missouri Department of Health & Senior Services issued a report in March claiming there was no health problem near Coldwater Creek and essentially blaming the victims for bad lifestyle choices.

…The “experts” studied some health data in a handful of ZIP codes between 1996 and 2004, meaning at best they considered the wrong people. As a horde of angry critics pointed out, there’s great turnover in North County residency.

The large majority of real victims no longer live in the studied area, and as much as 75 percent of the area’s residents have moved in so recently that their histories meant nothing to the issue. The study made no effort whatsoever to track the experiences of the generation whose tragic stories…” are happening now.

The piece mirrors the outrage of residents who have watched as their neighbors, friends and family become sick within the past five years from exposure to the toxic creek decades ago. Residents have reported more than 2,500 cases of cancer, autoimmune diseases and birth defects. They include higher than average reports of rare diseases like brain cancer, thyroid cancer, appendix cancer and more.

Click here to read the full piece on St. Louis Magazine’s website >>>

Asbestos Litigation History: The Cover-Up

Asbestos has been used for thousands of years. Although it is sometimes assumed that the health hazards of asbestos have only been known for the past century, this is not the case. The dangers of asbestos exposure came to light as far back as the year 100 AD, when Roman Naturalist Pliny the Elder wrote about the gruesome consequences he witnessed among slaves at asbestos jobsites. In his work Natural History, Pliny the Elder noted the quick, painful deaths brought on by respiratory diseases among the slaves who had worked with asbestos. 

Did You Know? Asbestos Litigation History Facts

The American legal system has evolved over the years, and within it, asbestos litigation has evolved as well. The health risks associated with asbestos were known as early as the 1930s, but companies purposefully hid that knowledge from their employees. 

In a previous blog post, we examined important dates in American history concerning asbestos litigation. Here, we will go through some of the most infamous asbestos litigation history facts that you may not be aware of. Did you know:

• Asbestos mines were used in ancient Greece, Finland, Sweden, and Cyprus as far back as 5000 BC.
• Archeological digs uncovered asbestos use in Egypt and Scandinavia dating back to 3000 BC.
• Asbestos was once used in burial shrouds for Egyptians in 2000 BC.
• The name “asbestos” dates back to 50 AD, when Roman Scholar Pliny the Elder wrote about the mineral and noticed grueling illnesses among slaves who had woven the mineral into cloths.
• Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne supposedly had a tablecloth made of asbestos that he purified by throwing into fire. He died in 814 from pleurisy (inflammation of a membrane that surrounds the lungs).
• The first U.S. patent for asbestos was issued in 1828.
• Use of asbestos really took off in the 1860s, when it was used as a raw material in manufacturing and construction industries.
• A report was released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics in 1918 that detailed early deaths among asbestos workers.
• The first known death from asbestos occurred in 1924, when British woman Nellie Kershaw dies from asbestosis.
• Johns-Manville, a major asbestos company, produced an internal report that detailed medical records of asbestos worker fatalities in 1930.
• Asbestos was once used in safety clothing. Because it is fireproof, asbestos was woven into clothing to shield people working with or in flammable areas.
• The first ill asbestos worker who filed an asbestos product liability in the United States actually lost the case. It happened in Beaumont, Texas in 1966.
• Hundreds of thousands of U.S. military veterans have been exposed to toxic asbestos-containing materials.
• By 1982, 1,000 asbestos claims had been filed with $1 billion spent by the defendants and insurers.
• Twenty years later, in 2002, 730,000 asbestos claims had been filed with $70 billion spent by defendants and insurers.
• While it is banned in Canada and the UK, asbestos is not banned in the United States.

Past Asbestos Litigation: A Timeline

Bridgeton Landfill: Rolling Stone Magazine Puts Spotlight on Underground Fire

The fugitive emissions and underground fire stemming from the Bridgeton Landfill in North St. Louis County has received national coverage from an article published  Friday in Rolling Stone Magazine. The article by Steven Hsieh is called “St. Louis is Burning.” The reporter provides an investigative look into the problems surrounding the landfill and considers the long terms implications of the toxic mess currently smoldering in St. Louis’ backyard.

“There's a fire burning in Bridgeton, Missouri. It's invisible to area residents, buried deep beneath the ground in a North St. Louis County landfill. But the smoldering waste is an unavoidable presence in town, giving off a putrid odor that clouds the air miles away – an overwhelming stench described by one area woman as "rotten eggs mixed with skunk and fertilizer." Residents report smelling it at K-12 school buses, a TGI Fridays and even the operating room of a local hospital. "It smells like dead bodies," observes another local….

Click here to read the full article on the Rolling Stone's website.