Asbestos Lung Cancer is Not Only a Smoker’s Disease

Although the leading cause of lung cancer is still smoking, asbestos exposure is another common cause of lung cancer. Smoking alone is hazardous for anyone’s health, but when combined with asbestos exposure, the chances of developing lung cancer are doubled. When a smoker is exposed to asbestos, his or her chances of developing mesothelioma or asbestos lung cancer multiply exponentially. In the United States, there were approximately “222,520 new lung cancer cases and 157,300 deaths” reported in 2010. (NCI)

Exposure to Asbestos caused his Asbestos Lung Cancer

Weitzlux.com is your leading source for all asbestos related information. Please read the following story about a former airplane mechanic who developed lung cancer after years of exposure to asbestos and tobacco smoke.

“I used to do renovating and repair work in Long Island.  In like, 1975 or 1976, I can’t remember exactly when…. Anyway, one of the houses that I worked on had a loft bedroom upstairs, which I renovated using sheetrock. It was a pretty grueling project--- took me two or three months to do.”

“It wasn’t just in the loft bedroom where I used the asbestos sheetrock, but in the basement too. Eight to ten hard hours a week with no one to help me.  So I was all alone in there, inhaling that asbestos stuff, which of course I didn’t think twice about at the time. I just wanted to get the job done and done well.”

“…..I’m sorry if my voice breaks, or if I cough a lot. I’m just….. in a lot of pain. I’m taking stuff for it you know, the doctor has me on all kinds of medications, but they only do so much.  I get tired, you know, like a lot. Really, really, tired. I used to have so much energy.”

“Come to think of it, my first brush with asbestos happened years before I was renovating houses. My dad, you know, he was an aircraft mechanic. One of the best at what he did.  I worked with him sometimes…learned the craft as best as I could. He’d come home at nights looking kind of like a ghost, you know, covered from head to foot in white powder… Did he smoke? Oh yeah, definitely, Dad smoked like a chimney! Can’t remember the exact brand of his cigs, but he’d knock off half a box or more in a day. Heh. Working with asbestos coupled with all the smoking is probably what cut his life so short.”

“I followed in my dad’s footsteps and became an aircraft mechanic.  I was a plane cap.. which I guess is a fancy way of saying that I was the brains behind getting the plane to work. I tinkered with other models now and again… but most of the work I did was on this one plane called the F-8U Crusader. A fighter plane. I worked on the hydraulic system, the fuel system..all the routine stuff.  I also handled break building and repair. I jacked up the main landing gears, removed the tire assemblies, disconnected the brake lines, removed the brake assembly, cleaned the area then did the same thing in reverse to put the new brake assembly on. If it sounds confusing, that’s because it is to anyone who isn’t a mechanic. I was definitely inhaling that asbestos stuff because back in the 60s, all the brake assemblies had asbestos.”

“Maybe 10 years after I retired from diddling around with airplane brakes, I started to feel out of it. You know, I don’t expect to have the energy of a 20 year old at my age, but it’s really annoying that I can’t even get up a short flight of stairs without getting hoarse, dizzy and fatigued. I feel robbed you know? Robbed of what could have been a good retirement.”

Weitz & Luxenberg can get justice for asbestos lung cancer patients

Weitz & Luxenberg has been a leader in asbestos related litigation for over two decades. We have achieved more favorable verdicts and settlements for people just like you who have been diagnosed with asbestos lung cancer, mesothelioma, or asbestosis following exposure to asbestos.  Our attorneys have the qualifications and experience necessary to get you the justice and compensation you deserve.

In May 2007 Weitz & Luxenberg successfully demonstrated that exposure to asbestos was a primary catalyst for asbestos lung cancer. Our attorneys secured almost $30 million for the family of Edward M., who used to work as a boiler maker and over $10 million for the family of Robert L., a steam fitter. Although both of these men smoked, the jury determined that their exposure to asbestos in their respective work environments were “substantial factors” in causing their lung cancer.

If you would like a free legal review of your asbestos lung cancer case, please fill out the form on this page. All communication will be strictly confidential, and there is no fee unless we secure a monetary verdict or settlement for you.

Acknowledgements:

National Cancer Institute (NCI) http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Risk/asbestos