PLEURAL DISEASE
Asbestos-related pleural disease has existed for a long time, say early medical reports

Two new findings on asbestos-related pleural disease stand out in early medical reports.

The first concerns pleural disease, which was detailed in 1924 and well illustrated in the 1927 description of Cooke's case. This abnormality further separated asbestosis from the other “pneumoconiotic” dust diseases, since pleural abnormalities were not a feature of either silicosis or coal workers’ pneumoconiosis.

Second, the strikingly unusual finding of “ifiamentous” structures, both uncoated (understood to be asbestos fibers) and coated, again was unique. The coated structures occasioned a vigorous debate at first, since their initial identification did not establish them as related to the mineral fibers inhaled. [Cooke even considered that the "curious bodies" might be organic in nature.

Soon, however, their significance was clarified, with their designation changing from "curious bodies" to "asbestosis bodies" to "asbestos bodies." Further, it was rapidly established that their central core need not be an asbestos fiber, but that other inorganic materials, if they were fibrous in form, could also stimulate the tissue reactions that produce a coating, and the term "pseudo-asbestos bodies" was used, later to be generalized as "ferruginous bodies."

The truth about asbestos

Despite the potentially fatal health consequences associated with asbestos exposure, asbestos is still imported and used in the United States for its insulation properties. The United States imported and used an estimated 1,820 tons of asbestos in 2007, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

Government sources estimate that in the next decade more than 35,000 people nationwide will be diagnosed with the deadliest form of asbestos-related cancer, mesothelioma. This disease is most often the result of industrial workplace exposure to asbestos – and usually contracted through employers’ blatant disregard for the health and safety of their workers.

Time to seek justice!

That’s why people diagnosed with mesothelioma and their family members have strong cases in court. Weitz & Luxenberg has protected the legal rights of workers for 25 years – longer than most law firms in the nation. And in that time the firm's mesothelioma lawyers have won several billion dollars in verdicts and settlements for clients.

If you have been diagnosed with mesothelioma, and seek FREE legal guidance and answers to your concerns, please notify us through the communication form below. We will pursue your claim with vigilance to help you pay for medical bills, future and past lost wages, and damages. There is no cost to you until we win a settlement or a verdict.