The proposals are a result of years of campaigning by advocates, who have fought for better treatment, support and compensation for victims and their families even after the 2007 legal setback.

Included in the measures are:

• The creation of an Employers’ Liability Tracing Office, which helps victims track down a company’s insurer (at the time of exposure).  Since many manufacturers of asbestos products are no longer in business, finding their insurers from a given period has been extremely difficult.

• The creation of an Employers’ Liability Bureau which will act as a fund of last resort in the event the insurer cannot be found.  Victims will receive compensation from this fund, if necessary.

• Increased upfront payments for mesothelioma victims.

• A series of payments of £5,000 for people who had begun, but not yet resolved a legal claim for compensation at the time of the 2007 ruling.

• A pledge to increase funding for mesothelioma research.

A local coroner, William Armstrong, supports the plans.  He told the Norwich Evening News,  “I deal with a substantial number of inquests into people who have died from asbestos-related diseases and the numbers seem to be growing.

“There are unfortunately people who have been exposed to asbestos many years before the condition manifests itself and many of them die in very distressing circumstances.

“Anything that can be done to help their relatives and loved ones claim the compensation to which they are entitled is very much to be welcomed.”

Ministers have also vowed to set up a working group consisting of mesothelioma lawyers, unions, insurers, the judiciary and civil servants to review asbestos law practices and procedures for obtaining compensation.  They also hope to streamline the process in order to reduce the time it takes for cases to conclude.

Click here for the full article.

He was diagnosed with mesothelioma, a deadly cancer associated with asbestos exposure, in 2009 and had undergone chemotherapy treatment.  He passed away at a medical facility outside of Los Angeles, California.

Last year, Olsen filed a mesothelioma lawsuit against NBC Universal, 20th Century Fox and other companies, claiming his cancer was from negligent exposure to asbestos according to The Washington Post.

Olsen starred at Utah State University before going on to play professional football for the Los Angeles Rams, winning numerous awards and never missing a game.   He played in 14 consecutive Pro Bowls and was elected to the NFL Hall of Fame in 1982.  While playing for the Rams he earned a master’s degree in economics from Utah State.

After his playing career was over, Olsen made a seamless transition to television, spending 16 years as a broadcaster for NBC’s football coverage.  His colleagues praised him for his attention to detail and intelligent and insightful commentary.

“He was so thoroughly prepared, he should have been a lawyer,” his longtime NBC broadcast partner Dick Enberg told the Los Angeles Times in 2006.

He then became a television actor.  He was best known for his roles on the popular shows Little House on the Prairie and Father Murphy.

Olsen is survived by his wife of 47 years, Susan Olsen, three children, three brothers, five sisters and four grandchildren.

Click here for the article.

Mr. Smotherman was born February 1, 1933 in Toledo, Michigan, and attended Scott High School. Mr. Smotherman was a union man, he was a member of the Toledo Area Sheet Metal Workers Union Local 33, and frequently took work and contracts through his union rather than directly from companies and employers.  He retired in 1988, and friends and family describe him as being extremely proud of the work he did during his days as a welder in the Air Force and private sector.  Mr. Smotherman was diagnosed with mesothelioma in January 2010, and passed away a little over two months later, he was 77 years old.

Mr. Smotherman’s mesothelioma diagnosis was the result of a lifetime of working with asbestos and asbestos products in the welding field.  It is known that aircraft repairmen and specifically welders were exposed to the asbestos materials that were present in military aircraft of the 1950s through the 1970s.  Even after his career in the Air Force and in his civilian work, he worked as a welder in power plants, shipyards and foundries; all places where asbestos was present.  Like many men of his generation, Mr. Smotherman spent years in a military and industry where asbestos was used, and information about its dangerous health side effects was misrepresented and sometimes covered up.

Citing a lack of standards or plans for asbestos management in schools (and other public buildings), the report backs the The Mirror’s “Asbestos Timebomb” campaign, which has called for a public register of asbestos surveys in all public buildings.

ATAC took a small sample of Britain’s 25,000 schools, and concluded that the problem of asbestos in public buildings is not being solved by current asbestos law that says it is safe if left undisturbed.

About 13,000 of the country’s schools were built between 1945 and 1974 when asbestos use was at its peak, according to The Mirror.

“The increasing number of mesothelioma deaths (an asbestos-related disease) amongst teachers and support staff is testament that the policy of management has failed,” the report says.

With the support of Members of Parliament, Teachers’ unions and asbestos advocates will take the report to the Minister of Schools and demand a change in the policy and asbestos law.  Supporters seek a public register of asbestos surveys in all public buildings, including schools.

Click here to read the article.

Click here to read the ATAC report.

Many things can cause fatigue during treatment for mesothelioma. The treatments themselves can cause tiredness. If you are living with mesothelioma and it is making it difficult to breathe, this can make fatigue worse.

Some people experience anemia during treatment. Anemia reduces the ability of your blood to carry oxygen throughout the body. With less oxygen to fuel muscles, you feel tired and weary.

If you are so tired that you can’t complete your daily activities at all, talk to your doctor. If your fatigue is due to an underlying medical cause, your doctor can help.

Nutrition Helps

Even with the best medical management, fatigue can be worsened by not eating enough or eating the wrong foods. By focusing on good nutrition, you can give your body the energy it needs to function at it’s best. The following ideas will get you on track for fueling your body right.

Nutrition Tips for Energy

• Drink plenty of fluids. Dehydration worsens fatigue.
• Aim for at least 8 cups of fluid each day. Try water, tea, or water 100% fruit juice diluted with a bit of water. If you have a fluid restriction, ask your doctor how much fluid you should have each day.
• Avoid drinking regular soda. It is loaded with sugar. This may give you “quick energy,” but it will make you more tired in the long run.
• If you are not losing weight, do not overeat for energy. This can cause excess weight gain. Carrying around extra weight will worsen fatigue
• If you find you cannot eat due to stress, depression, anxiety, or other emotions talk to your medical team right away. They can give you information on how to manage stress. Your medical team can put you in contact with a counselor, a support group, or another mental health care provider if you’d like.
• Avoid snacking on candy, soda pop, cakes, donuts, baked goods, cookies, pies and other dessert foods. These high-sugar foods may give a quick “energy boost”, but you will feel worse once this wears off.
• Have some protein or some healthy fat, such as nuts or seeds, with each meal and snack. Protein and fat give you longer-lasting energy. For example, try eating a piece of fruit plus a handful of nuts. Or try fruit with cottage cheese.
• Focus on protein. Your body needs protein to repair and heal itself. Protein also is needed to build up your immune system and your blood cells. Protein-rich foods include eggs, chicken, fish, meat, yogurt, cottage cheese, nuts and seeds, and peanut butter.

And don’t forget to talk to your health care team about extreme tiredness. If your fatigue has a medical cause, such as anemia, there may be medications that can help!

The Feres Doctrine was the resulting legal precedence that was established by the US Supreme Court as a result of Feres v. United States 340 U.S. 130 (1950).  The court ruled that under the Federal Tort Claims Act, the US government was not liable for damages paid to military service members who are injured on active duty.  Even further, the US government was not accountable for the negligence of any of the armed forces resulting in injuries, even death.  This resulted in laws and practices that make it illegal to sue the government or the military for injury or wrongful death of a service member by the service member themselves, or their families.  This includes all legal grievances that veterans have against the US government for placing veterans in danger of asbestos exposure by supplying them with asbestos containing products and asbestos containing materials. 

Even more troubling is that the Veteran Administration Hospitals that were created to serve these individuals offer little assistance in asbestos-related diseases.  The VA department does not currently recognize mesothelioma and asbestos related diseases as “service connected injuries.” Why the VA and the US government have decided to turn a blind eye to the matter of mesothelioma and asbestos exposure through military service, no one can clearly say.  The simple truth is, that the Veteran Affairs department and the US government have yet to get serious about asbestos-related diseases, and the role they have played in the lives of thousands of veterans since 1940.

Veterans are, however, able to pursue claims against the asbestos manufacturers who supplied the government and various other companies with asbestos containing materials and products that were present on the ships they served on, the vehicles they worked on, or the planes they repaired.   While this has proven adequate, veterans still deserve an explanation and acceptable level of responsibility by the US government and the Veterans Administration department.

Asbestos exposure in the US military began in the early days of World War II, and continued well into the 1970s.  For over 40 years, military contractors and construction firms were using asbestos-containing materials and products to build war ships.  Not only ships, but mechanical components of aircraft, tanks, and vehicles contained the hazardous material.  Nearly all members of the US armed forces from 1940 to the mid-1970s were at risk of asbestos exposure, and therefore in danger of developing the rare form of cancer called Mesothelioma.

Thankfully, by the late 1970s the harmful effects of asbestos were brought to light, and the US government, with the help of the Environmental Protection Agency, began to crack down on asbestos corporations, and remove the material from its contracts.  But, the damage was done!  Generations of veterans and defense firm workers had been affected by the harmful materials, and due to the exceptional long latency period of the disease (30-40 years) have begun to show symptoms and suffer as a result of the disease since the late 1960s.

Since the public realization of asbestos exposure leading to mesothelioma in the 1960s, the DoD has been slow, even stagnant, to lend their support to these veterans. Even today, the Veterans Affairs Administration does not recognize mesothelioma and asbestos exposure as a “service related/connected injury.”  For decades, veterans and workers who contracted Mesothelioma as a result of work in the military or for corporations had to seek damages and compensation from the asbestos companies themselves.  However, this recent shift in DoD focus on Mesothelioma might be the hope that so many are looking for.

Since the research awards have been distributed, nearly $50 million dollars have been given to three specific medical researchers to combat and identify the mesothelioma disease.   Harvey Pass, M.D, and Margaret E. Huflejt, PhD., will explore new markers for the detection of mesothelioma at earlier stages and will identify new therapeutic targets. Lee Krug, M.D., is slated to lead a multi-site clinical trial of a new vaccine-based therapy that is believed to hold tremendous promise.  With this sudden interest and funding support of mesothelioma research, it appears that the DoD and the US military have begun to focus on providing care and hope for the veterans who served this country faithfully for generations.

Alyssa Rubin is one of our Asbestos Case Managers and has been working with mesothelioma victims and their loved ones for over a year.  She writes about her experience at the Miles for Meso event below.

“This past weekend I travelled to Boca Raton, FL with a few of my co-workers to attend the Miles for Meso 5K Run/Walk.  The purpose of the race was to raise awareness and money to support research for mesothelioma. It was a great experience, as I spend most of my time speaking on the phone with those that have been affected by mesothelioma and other asbestos-related conditions.  I felt it was very important for me  to go out there and show my support.

It was rather chilly the morning of the race, especially for Florida, but nevertheless many people came out to participate. It was great to see a variety of age groups both running/walking in the race as well as volunteering.  I myself did not run/walk in the race, but handed water out to those crossing the finish line, and also cheered on my co-workers that did take part. We all handed out the bags of goodies that we had brought filled with information about mesothelioma and the efforts to ban asbestos in the US. I also very much enjoyed interacting with the community of people that attended, and providing information to those that wanted to know more.

I would say the best part of the entire trip was getting to meet Mr. Larry Davis. He organized the event and is a survivor of peritoneal mesothelioma. Mr. Davis has experienced this cancer first hand, fought it hard, and with his selfless efforts not only put together the race, but participated in it. He is an inspiration to all.

I had a great time this weekend and I hope that our efforts with the Miles for Meso 5K and any future events that we may participate in will pay off in our fight to raise awareness and ban asbestos.

Many people with mesothelioma will continue to eat and enjoy their favorite foods. This is a time when food should be viewed as something joyful to be shared and to nourish the body and the spirit. Focusing on healthy, nourishing foods is important, but enjoying favorite foods, even if they aren’t considered “nutritious”, is important too.

Food Can Be Stressful

I don’t know too many people who see food strictly as fuel. We use food to celebrate, to mourn, when we are bored, to socialize, to express love, and more. Food represents so many things in our culture. When food no longer is wanted or enjoyed, everyone struggles to cope with the changes.

For anyone with a disease that is considered incurable, such as mesothelioma, there will come a time when food simply isn’t appealing. This is normal and it is to be expected, but it can be very distressing for everyone.

The person with mesothelioma may feel like they aren’t “trying hard enough” to eat. Friends and family members will worry that a person is suffering from not eating enough. This is a time when questions about nutrition support often arise.

What is Nutrition Support?

As a natural part of the process of “winding down”, the body needs fewer calories and less fluid to be satisfied. Sometimes this process occurs “in time” with the disease process: people naturally eat and drink less as they get closer to death.

At other times, however, a person may lose the ability or desire to eat long before their disease becomes advanced. In these cases, nutrition support can be an important part of medical care.

Nutrition support comes in several forms:

• Liquid supplements that are high in calories and protein. These can be consumed in addition to food that is being eaten or replace food that is not being eaten.
• Liquid supplements that are delivered into the body through tube feeding, placed directly into the stomach or into the upper portion of the intestinal tract.
• Parenteral nutrition, in which nutrition is given intravenously, into a vein in the arm or chest.

The When and Why of Nutrition Support

When a mesothelioma patient loses the desire or ability to eat, yet still has a lot of life left, nutrition support can improve quality of life. Nutrition support can give a mesothelioma patient the energy to do what is most important. This might include spending time with family and friends, playing with grand kids, and attending weddings, graduations, and other meaningful events.

Drinkable Liquid Supplements

Liquid supplements that you drink have the advantage of being relatively inexpensive. You don’t need a prescription to get them and you can buy them at most pharmacies or grocery stores. You can order them online too. They come in a variety of flavors.

The major disadvantage of this type of supplement is that if you aren’t able to eat enough food to maintain your energy and strength, you may not be able to drink enough supplements either.

Tube Feeding

Tube feeding has the advantage of being “almost like eating”. If the tube is in your stomach, you can “take in” the liquid nutrition that you need in the same way that you would eat. You can have “3 meals and 2 snacks” per day using your feeding tube. This frees you to do other things you enjoy.

Another advantage is that tube feeding uses your normal digestive processes. This may not seem important for your health, but it is. The GI tract regulates a large portion of the body’s immune system. When the GI tract is no longer used, this can create problems with immunity. Not using the GI tract can increase risk of infections and contribute to feeling weak and fatigued as well.

Sometimes, a feeding tube is placed into your intestinal tract instead of your stomach. If this is the case, you cannot put large volumes of nutritional formula into the tube at one time. You will have a special pump to get nutrition into the tube slowly. This can take more time, which is a disadvantage. Many people are able to complete most of their tube feeding at night, while they are sleeping, which can alleviate this problem.

The type of tube can be a disadvantage as well. If you have a nasogastric, or NG, tube, this means a short end of the tube will hang out of your nose at all times. This can seriously decrease quality of life for many people.

A better option is to have a percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy, or PEG, tube. This means you will have a short bit of tube directly into your stomach. This is clamped off when not in use. This is not visible under your clothes, which is why a PEG tube is preferred over an NG tube.

Parenteral Nutrition

The advantage of parenteral nutrition is that it can provide nutrition to someone who no longer has a functioning GI tract. If a person has a blockage in their stomach or intestine due to a tumor, for example, parenteral nutrition can provide needed nutrition.

Parenteral nutrition has many disadvantages, however. It is only used as a last resort in most cases. Parenteral nutrition requires a prescription. It is very expensive and may not be covered by insurance.

Parenteral nutrition can be tough to manage for someone who is not comfortable with medical procedures. The risk of serious infection can be high with parenteral nutrition. These infections can be life threatening.

Putting It All Together

In the end, whether you use nutrition support is completely up to you. Your dietitian or doctor may recommend nutrition support. You will make the final decision as to whether you would like to follow through on the recommendation.

Be sure you get all of the information you need. A dietitian can answer your questions. You may be given videos to watch or handouts to read that will help you understand the process as well. This will help you feel ready to use nutrition support, if that is what you decide.

With a little bit of education and coaching, anyone can learn how to use tube feeding or parenteral nutrition. There is no reason for fear to prevent you from getting the nutrition you need.

Once you understand all of your options, you can make the best decision for you!

I am also looking back at 2009 to see the accomplishments and challenges of the past year.  I am remembering the work I have done with mesothelioma victims and their loved ones.  I am remembering those battling this devastating disease and those who have lost their battles.  I am thinking about ways to honor the people who have changed my life just by hearing their stories and watching their strength in light of this diagnosis.

You are all in my thoughts and prayers today.  I wish you a happy and safe transition into the New Year!