Mesothelioma is a type of cancer that develops from the thin layer of tissue that covers many of the internal organs. The most common area affected is the lining of the lungs and chest wall. Less commonly the lining of the abdomen and rarely the sac surrounding the heart, or the sac surrounding the testis may be affected. Signs and symptoms of mesothelioma may include shortness of breath due to fluid around the lung, a swollen abdomen, chest wall pain, cough, feeling tired, and weight loss. These symptoms typically come on slowly.
Linda Teresa Sánchez is an American politician and former labor lawyer serving as the U.S. representative for California's 38th congressional district. A member of the Democratic Party, Sánchez was first elected to Congress in 2002. She serves on the Ways and Means Committee and is the previous ranking member on the House Ethics Committee. In the 114th Congress, she chaired the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.
Chrysotile or white asbestos is the most commonly encountered form of asbestos, accounting for approximately 95% of the asbestos in the United States and a similar proportion in other countries. It is a soft, fibrous silicate mineral in the serpentine subgroup of phyllosilicates; as such, it is distinct from other asbestiform minerals in the amphibole group. Its idealized chemical formula is Mg3(Si2O5)(OH)4. The material has physical properties which make it desirable for inclusion in building materials, but poses serious health risks when dispersed into air and inhaled.
The Congressional Record is the official record of the proceedings and debates of the United States Congress, published by the United States Government Publishing Office and issued when Congress is in session. The Congressional Record Index is updated daily online and published monthly. At the end of a session of Congress, the daily editions are compiled in bound volumes constituting the permanent edition. Chapter 9 of Title 44 of the United States Code authorizes publication of the Congressional Record.
The mineral asbestos is subject to a wide range of laws and regulations that relate to its production and use, including mining, manufacturing, use and disposal. Injuries attributed to asbestos have resulted in both workers' compensation claims and injury litigation. Health problems attributed to asbestos include asbestosis, mesothelioma, lung cancer, and diffuse pleural thickening.
The American Public Health Association (APHA) is a Washington, D.C.-based professional organization for public health professionals in the United States.
Jordan Zevon is an American singer, musician and songwriter. He is the son of rock musician Warren Zevon.
Bernard Douglas Banton AM was an Australian social justice campaigner. He was the widely recognized face of the legal and political campaign to achieve compensation for the many sufferers of asbestos-related conditions, which they contracted after either working for the company James Hardie or being exposed to James Hardie Industries' products.
World Cancer Day is an international day marked on 4 February to raise awareness of cancer and to encourage its prevention, detection, and treatment. World Cancer Day is led by the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) to support the goals of the World Cancer Declaration, written in 2008. The primary goal of World Cancer Day is to significantly reduce illness and death caused by cancer and is an opportunity to rally the international community to end the injustice of preventable suffering from cancer. The day is observed by the United Nations.
Irving J. Selikoff was a medical researcher who in the 1960s established a link between the inhalation of asbestos particles and lung-related ailments. His work is largely responsible for the regulation of asbestos today. He also co-discovered a treatment for tuberculosis.
Asbestos is a naturally occurring fibrous silicate mineral. There are six types, all of which are composed of long and thin fibrous crystals, each fibre being composed of many microscopic "fibrils" that can be released into the atmosphere by abrasion and other processes. Inhalation of asbestos fibres can lead to various dangerous lung conditions, including mesothelioma, asbestosis, and lung cancer, so it is now notorious as a serious health and safety hazard.
The Armley asbestos disaster is an ongoing health issue originating in Armley, a suburb of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Described by Dr. Geoffrey Tweedale as a "social disaster", it involved the contamination with asbestos dust of an area consisting of around 1,000 houses in the Armley Lodge area of the city.
Peritoneal mesothelioma is the name given to the cancer that attacks the lining of the abdomen. This type of cancer affects the lining that protects the contents of the abdomen and which also provides a lubricating fluid to enable the organs to move and work properly.
The Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) is a nonprofit organization in the U.S. dedicated to preventing asbestos exposure, eliminating asbestos-related diseases such as mesothelioma, and protecting asbestos victims' civil rights through education, advocacy, and community initiatives. ADAO was founded by Linda Reinstein and Doug Larkin in 2004 and is headquartered in Redondo Beach, California. Three boards lead it: the Board of Directors, Science Advisory Board, and Prevention Advisory Board.
Russell W. Budd is an American trial lawyer best known for representing plaintiffs claiming toxic and chemical exposure such as asbestos. He is president and managing shareholder of the law firm Baron & Budd, P.C. Budd has also been an active figure in politics as a fundraiser for the Democratic Party.
Nancy Tait, born in Enfield, London was a health and safety activist and campaigner who sought to raise awareness of the health risks associated with exposure to asbestos.
Heather Von St. James is an American cancer survivor, cancer research advocate, and blogger. Von St. James serves as a mesothelioma research funding advocate and conference speaker for the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization and Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation.
The Furthering Asbestos Claim Transparency (FACT) Act of 2015 is a bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Congressman Blake Farenthold that would require asbestos trusts in the United States to file quarterly reports about the payouts they make and personal information on the victims who receive them in a publicly accessible database. The legislation would also allow defendant corporations in asbestos cases to demand information from the trusts for any reason.
David John Sugarbaker was an American physician who was chief of the division of general thoracic surgery and the director of the Baylor College of Medicine Lung Institute at CHI St. Luke's Health–Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center in Houston, Texas. He was an internationally recognized thoracic surgeon specializing in the treatment of mesothelioma, the surgical management of malignant pleural mesothelioma, and treatment of complex thoracic cancers.
All types of asbestos fibers are known to cause serious health hazards in humans. The most common diseases associated with chronic exposure to asbestos are asbestosis and mesothelioma.
