BREAKING NEWS
Medical scientists discover gene that protects against lung cancer

December 5, 2008 – Scientists have identified a gene that appears to protect the body from developing lung cancer, one of the biggest killers in the developed world.

The breakthrough could have significant implications for the fight against asbestos industrial killers like mesothelioma, the world’s deadliest form of lung cancer. The discovery could also lead to new treatments and early screening techniques.

British and U.S. medical scientists working on separate continents discovered that the tumor suppressor gene LIMD1 is responsible for protecting the body.

The international research team – working at the University of Nottingham in England and Washington University in the U.S. – compared lung cancer tissue with healthy lung tissue and found that the LIMD1 gene was missing in the majority of lung cancer samples.

Scientists concluded that the presence of the LIMD1 gene protected the body against tumor growth in the lungs. The research is discussed in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Mesothelioma, asbestos-caused lung cancer

Government sources estimate that in the next decade more than 35,000 people nationwide will be diagnosed with 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.

That’s why people diagnosed with mesothelioma and their surviving 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 its attorneys have won several billion dollars in verdicts and settlements for its clients.

If you have a mesothelioma injury, please complete the form on this page for a free evaluation of your legal rights. There is no cost to you until we win a settlement or a verdict.