Asbestos clinic gets surprise donation from Simmons Mesothelioma Foundation

A nationally recognized medical clinic in the small town of Libby, Montana, recently received a nice reminder that they’re not the only ones who think the work they do for patients with asbestos-related diseases is important.

The Simmons Mesothelioma Foundation recently donated $10,000 to the Center for Asbestos Related Diseases.

The Center for Asbestos Related Diseases is one of a few medical facilities in the nation solely dedicated to treating people with diseases, like mesothelioma, caused by asbestos exposure. Most people would expect to find the treatment options CARD doctors provide in the bigger cities like New York or at a top university like the University of Pennsylvania. But in this case, the clinic went to the people. Literally.

The 10,000 people who live in Libby are 30 percent more likely to develop an asbestos-related disease, like mesothelioma or lung cancer, because a vermiculite mine operated from the 1960s to the early 1990s just outside of town. This form of vermiculite, a shiny rock similar to mica, contained amphibole asbestos. The mining process broke down the asbestos, creating a fine dust, which covered, not only miners, but the entire town. I have read news stories about how it would blanket the town. Miners would come home covered in it, children would play in it, and the wives would clean it, because, back then, no one really understood its dangers. Except the mining company.

W.R. Grace Co., who owned the mine, knowingly poisoned the entire town. Studies estimate that since 1960, 88 miners have died from asbestos-related diseases and that 1 in 40 of residents in Libby and the surrounding area have died or suffered from asbestos-related diseases. Because of this, the town was designated a National Public Health Emergency by the Environmental Protection Agency, the first ever such declaration made by the agency.

Asbestos exposure, even though it might have happened decades ago, is killing people now. No one understands this better than Libby, Montana and the doctors at CARD. The Simmons firm is proud to know that it’s multi-million pledge to the Simmons Mesothelioma Foundation is going to help the people who need it most, such as those treated at CARD.

The Simmons Mesothelioma Foundation didn’t mail a check, as this news article in the town’s newspaper, The Western News, reports. Foundation Chairman John Simmons hand-delivered it while he was on vacation.

BBC's "Dangers in the Dust" asbestos investigation highlights "take home" asbestos exposure

At long last, we’re seeing some meaningful, in-depth media coverage surrounding asbestos exposure and the horrible diseases it causes, like mesothelioma.

This is all courtesy of a collaboration between the BBC's International News Service and the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. "Dangers in the Dust" is being rolled out this week across the BBC's international services, and through ICIJ’s more than 50 partner publications worldwide, including the McClatchy publishing company, owner of over 30 daily newspapers in the U.S. The series examines the dangers of asbestos on an international level and also includes a story on victims of “take home” asbestos exposure called, "Asbestos still killing families, decades later."

When most people think of mesothelioma – if they’ve ever even heard of mesothelioma – they think of a disease that strikes retired workers. They don’t think of people like our 39-year-old client Julie Gundlach. Since her mesothelioma diagnosis, she has been a tireless advocate for mesothelioma and asbestos-related illnesses.

When I was contacted by a reporter with McClatchy’s Illinois newspaper, the Belleville News-Democrat, writing an investigative piece on the dangers of asbestos and the “third wave” of asbestos victims, Julie immediately came to mind.

Julie is a young mother living with peritoneal mesothelioma. She lives in St. Louis with her husband, and she was exposed to asbestos when her father brought it home on his clothing after working as an industrial electrician.

Fact: people like Julie who don’t work around asbestos can be exposed to asbestos by others who do.

It’s called “take home” exposure. Here’s how it works: The asbestos dust gets on an worker’s clothes and skin. When they leave to go home so does the dust, causing them to expose their spouses, children and other immediate family members. In some cases, children have developed mesothelioma or other asbestos-related diseases later on in life because they hugged their parents. In Julie’s case, her childhood playroom doubled as her family’s laundry room where her father’s asbestos-covered clothes were washed.

Helping people like Julie as they fight to be that “one-in-a-million survivor,” as she says in the article, is rewarding. Her story illustrates the important role the legal process plays in ensuring mesothelioma cancer patients receive the funding they deserve to get the best treatments available.

As the BND article accurately states, she has had three surgeries and made over 25 trips to New York for treatment. "If it were not for the legalities, I would have never been able to receive the medical treatment I received," Gundlach said in the article. "I'm still not able to work. Mesothelioma kills innocent people, asbestos kills innocent people, it's not banned, and that is the story, that is the issue."

“Take Home” Asbestos Exposure In the Courtroom

Laws affecting victims of asbestos exposure are not relics from past generations. They continue to evolve in real time. Cases involving “take home” asbestos exposure can be especially combative because the company’s defense lawyers argue “take home” exposure isn’t their client’s problem because family members aren’t employees.

The Appellate Court ruled that companies are required to take steps to prevent the deadly dust from reaching the workers’ home. This is important because some courts have gone the other way and ruled the companies have no duty to the workers’ families; even though the risk of disease in the home was completely foreseeable.

For families like Julie Gundlach’s, this is very important. If certain companies are able to change the laws, sick family members will have no legal recourse. It is our goal to continue to fight for victims and make sure they have access to the courts.

Meso Foundation Symposium reminds me why I am a trial attorney

It never gets any easier. Every year I make my way to the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation's annual symposium, and every year I'm reminded of why I do what I do.

Each year, for three days, the mesothelioma community gathers in Washington D.C. to exchange medical and scientific updates, network with other allies in the fight to cure meso, and visit The Hill to ask our congressmen and women to allocate funds for mesothelioma research.

Friday evening, they have a tribute ceremony with a huge display of names etched on to a tribute wall. Our firm has a lot of names on that wall. I, personally, have represented a lot of names on that wall. Too many.

So why does this annual pilgrimage relate to being a trial attorney? Because we all play a part in this small but special community, and I know my role well. My job is to fight for the rights of individuals and families who have been wronged through no fault of their own. That's my contribution. And nothing inspires me more to keep fighting on their behalf than to have a good, hard look at that wall.

When you stand in a room with 300 people who have lost a loved one to mesothelioma, it puts things into perspective. Like how academia and the general public has labeled mesothelioma an “orphan” of cancers. When you consider us separately – the doctors, the victims, and the anti-stereotypical lawyers – maybe we are orphans, in a sense. Together, though, nothing could be further from the truth. We are united by this disease, and it feels very present and all too personal.

The hardest part about this tribute ceremony is that wall shouldn’t exist. Mesothelioma, which is caused by asbestos exposure, is a man made epidemic. Asbestos, ironically called the “miracle mineral” was heavily used from the 1930s through the 1970s in the manufacturing, shipping and construction industries. According to the most recent data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2004, approximately 2,700 Americans die annually from mesothelioma, and experts expect that number to continue increasing through 2025.

Companies who made asbestos knew the dangers, but ignored them. Instead they choose to barter their employees and their families’ lives for a bottom line. Because it takes between 10 and 50 years from the time of exposure to develop a meso diagnosis, the full ramifications of asbestos exposure remain hidden until it is too late. Meanwhile, the general public remains unaware that products being used in 2010 – like some automobile parts, certain construction materials and pipe insulation – still contain asbestos.

One fact is certain. The dangers of asbestos exposure were known as long ago as the 1950s, and we still don't have a full ban, and we definitely don't have enough support for research.

The Meso Foundation, which celebrates its 10-year anniversary this year, provides a gathering place for those who have been impacted by mesothelioma. Those who have been diagnosed, families who’ve lost loved ones, lawyers who won’t tolerate injustice, and doctors who are passionate about conquering what medical experts consider the most aggressive cancer of all cancers.

MARF has helped raise awareness about these companies and the dangers of asbestos exposure. In addition, they’ve awarded 67 peer-reviewed grants for over $6.4 million. Those grants have resulted in 32 scientific publications credits, including the world’s most prestigious medical journal, The New England Journal of Medicine.

No one has done more to keep peoples’ names off that wall than MARF, and we at the Simmons firm are proud to be their top supporter. We congratulate them for all the hard work they’ve done over the years to support the meso community. 

Rueters article highlights need for asbestos awareness

Earlier this week, while skimming my newsfeeds, I happened upon an example of why you shouldn’t believe everything you read. Over the past year, several companies that knowingly manufactured products with asbestos have declared bankruptcy to avoid their responsibility to compensate the people whom they killed. Reuter’s wire service included a June 7 story about the most recent, called Garlock Sealing Technologies, which manufactures fluid sealing products like gaskets used in the piping industry.

At one point, the article states that asbestos was banned by the U.S. government.

This is not true. Asbestos is not banned. Not in the U.S. Not in Canada. In fact, Canada is the second highest exporter of asbestos and the U.S. is its main customer, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. There has been an effort to ban asbestos with the Ban Asbestos in America Act sponsored by U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, but corporations, special interest groups and their lobbyists have defeated it every year for the last several years.

Research directly links asbestos exposure to deadly diseases like mesothelioma and lung cancer. The government has acknowledged the long-term danger associated with asbestos exposure by imposing training guidelines, like wearing hazmat suits, to ensure its safe removal from buildings. The irony is obvious when you consider that just last year the United States still exported 715 tons of this deadly poison, which kills 10,000 Americans annually, to use in shingles, brake pads and other household appliances.

More than four decades ago, the Environmental Protection Agency declared asbestos a known human carcinogen yet we’re still importing it in 2010?

It’s hard to convince the public a total ban is needed when they already believe it’s outlawed. Even politicians believe a ban is in place. As the Simmons law firm attends the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation’s 2010 International Symposium on Malignant Mesothelioma this week, I’m reminded of a story from last year’s event.

While advocating for more mesothelioma research dollars on The Hill, one mesothelioma victim got into an argument with their Congressman over whether asbestos had been banned. The Congressman, like most people, assumed asbestos had long since been banned by the U.S. government. You can imagine the Congressman surprise when a quick internet search proved him wrong.

Articles like the Reuters story perpetuate this misconception. The truth is asbestos is regulated, but it’s not completely banned. This article offers a stark reminder that we must take action now to prevent future asbestos-related deaths, just like we must continue to hold companies responsible for their actions.

Bankruptcy does not make them accountable. It’s a slap on the wrist. These companies are going bankrupt because they knowingly produced a product that poisons people, and they don’t want to take responsibility for their actions. It allows these companies to continue to earn profits while evading their responsibility to compensate the people they killed.

Going bankrupt doesn’t prevent more people from continuing to develop asbestos-related illnesses. It doesn’t give closure to people who have been diagnosed with mesothelioma or asbestos induced lung cancer. Banning asbestos does.

But you shouldn’t believe everything you read. Click here to learn more about what you can do to ban asbestos.

Simmons Firm to Attend 2010 International Symposium on Malignant Mesothelioma

It’s once again that time of year when the mesothelioma community descends on Washington, D.C. for the 2010 International Symposium on Malignant Mesothelioma hosted by the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation

This year the 3-day meso conference will run from June 10-12, 2010. Day one will be spent visiting congressional leaders. Day two and three will feature presentations by leading researchers and doctors about the most recent developments for the treatment of meso. Support sessions will also be available for meso patients and their families throughout the event. Several representatives from Simmons will be attending to show our support.

A sampling of the presentations I’m looking forward to include:

• Navigating Mesothelioma Clinical Trials with GPS (Getting Personalized Service)
  Presented by Robert Taub, MD, PhD
• Present and Future of Meso Treatment: Surgeon and Researcher Perspective
  Presented by Harvey Pass, MD
• Update on Clinical Trials and Meso Research
  Presented by Mary Hesdorffer, MS, APRN-BC, Meso Foundation Medical Liaison

Click here to view the full agenda.(PDF)

During this year’s conference, MARF will recognize three families whose selflessness has helped raise awareness about the dangers of asbestos exposure and mesothelioma.  According to MARF:

“The Bendix family, the Ruble family and the Sterling family have endured tremendous personal losses at the hand of mesothelioma. Despite knowing that their loved ones could not personally benefit from the results of their work, they banded together with friends and communities, to ensure hope for future generations, by funding three critical research projects through the Meso Foundation’s Research Program.”

It’s contributions families and individuals like this make that move us closer to the day when better treatment options become available and closer to finding a cure. I encourage all of you to join us as the mesothelioma community comes together to fight back against this orphan disease.

Click here to register for the 2010 International Symposium on Malignant Mesothelioma 

Stand Up 2 Cancer broadcast provides opportunity to increase awareness about mesothelioma

On Sept. 10, all the major television networks and several other broadcasters will once again air the 3-hour marathon Stand Up 2 Cancer. When SU2C aired in 2008, the program helped raise more than $100 million for cancer research spearheaded by The American Association for Cancer Research.  This year the program, interspersed with celebrity performances, will show viewers how five “Dream Teams” comprised of 13 scientists from across several disciplines are utilizing those dollars to extend cancer patients’ lives and to come closer to finding a cure.

The easy thing to do on this night would be to change the channel. I encourage you not to. Instead, I encourage you to listen because chances are you know someone whose life has been impacted by cancer. Chances are you’ve read news articles detailing how a person battled not only the physical, but the emotion and spiritual pain caused by a cancer diagnosis and won. Chances are you’ve told your kids not to smoke because you want to spare them that pain. Chances are you know where to find the next Relay for Life race in your community.

You know all of this. Everyone has heard of the super star cancers like breast cancer and pancreatic cancer, but what about those others with names so long you can’t remember how to pronounce? No one really knows about these orphan cancers like mesothelioma. Sometimes, not even your doctor.

Stand Up 2 Cancer provides an opportunity to have that conversation.

Every day I hear stories about people whose doctors didn’t know about mesothelioma. The diagnosis comes back and the patient’s doctor tells them to get their affairs in order because they only have six months to live.

If doctors don’t even know, how are you supposed to know that 3,000 new people are diagnosed with meso every year?  How are you supposed to know that asbestos, which causes meso, is still legal in the United States?  That the United States and Canada are the only two Western countries who have not taken significant efforts to ban asbestos? How are you supposed to know the research being done for other cancers helps meso and vice versa?

How are you supposed to know there’s hope for a cure and not just the superstar cancers like breast cancer, but for the orphan cancers like meso as well? Stand Up 2 Cancer, and other shows like it, is how you can know because it spotlights the work being done for all cancers so that someday there won’t be a need for us to know.  

Simmons Firm Employees “Get the Lead Out” in Support of a Mesothelioma Cure

It was cold on the morning of March 27, 2010, but that didn’t stop Gregg Kirkland and attorney Melissa Schopfer from the Simmons law firm from taking the street to fight for a cure for mesothelioma.

As participants in the 2010 “Get the Lead Out” 5K/10K run and 1 mile walk, Gregg and Melissa joined 600 others in raising more than $15,000 for mesothelioma research. The fundraiser was organized by The Norm Kulig 2Young2Go Foundation, which is dedicated to increasing the awareness of environmental related causes of cancer and furthering the scientific research of such cancers.

At the Simmons firm, we share these goals, which is why the firm served as a sponsor for the event. Like our own event, Miles for Meso, the Get the Lead Out 5K/10K not only raises much needed funding for mesothelioma research; it also attracts public attention to the serious problem of asbestos contamination and the danger it poses.

We’re extremely pleased Simmons employees were able to participate. Congratulations to the Foundation on a race well done!