Well Known Mesothelioma activist dies

Those that work or have ties to the asbestos mesothelioma community are today grieving the loss of Les Skramstad. Skramstad passed away in his Libby, Montana, home of mesothelioma. He was 70.

Lee is best known as one of the first people to suspect a connection between working in mines and mesothelioma, an aggressive form of cancer. A former vermiculite miner from 1959 to 1962, Skramstad’s warnings were largely unheeded until 1999 ,when a Seattle newspaper published an expose. In it was documentation showing dangerous levels of asbestos plus proof that officials knew about it.

Mesothelioma has a latency period extending from 10 to 40 years and often acts as a time bomb for those who worked in the affected mines. When the EPA came in, they declared the Montana town a Superfund site and called the contamination “the most horrific environmental disaster in this country's history.”

Vermiculite is a lightweight mineral used in insulation and gardening soil. Years ago it was used in 35 million homes as well as New York’s World Trade Center. The Libby facilities emitted about 5,000 pounds of asbestos into the air each day, often spreading as far as 30 miles. It was eventually shut down in 1990.

For more information on mesothelioma, please visit NYNJMesothelioma.com

USG Makes Final Asbestos Trust Payment

USG Makes Final $3.05 Bln Payment to Asbestos Trust

USB made it's last payment to the USG Asbestos Trust, fulfilling the building materials maker's financial obligations under a settlement announced in January 2006. Asbestos Trust was organized to pay all valid asbestos personal injury claims for which USG has legal responsibility.

Additional Resources for USG asbestos victims:

• USG Asbestos Trust Distribution Procedures
• USG Asbestos Personal Injury Trust Agreement
• Mesothelioma Asbestos Attorneys in New York & New Jersey

Makers of Potential Mesothelioma Treatment Seeks Orphan Drug Status (Part 1)

Today, Biopharmaceutical company Alfacell Corp. is asking the Food and Drug Administration to grant its lead drug candidate, Onconase, orphan drug status. Onconase is aimed at treating malignant mesothelioma, a rare form of cancer where malignant cells are found in the chest, abdominal cavity lining or the lining around the heart. The drug is currently in its confirmatory phase 3b trial for the treatment of unresectable malignant mesothelioma.

The Food and Drug Administration's orphan-drug designation is for drugs that treat diseases affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the United States. If granted, the designation will give Onconase seven years of market exclusivity as a malignant mesothelioma treatment

For more information on malignant mesothelioma and Onconase, please visit:

• Asbestos Mesothelioma Resource for New York and New Jersey Residents
• Onconase: Potential Malignant Mesothelioma Treatment

Nation’s First Talc/Asbestos Mesothelioma Verdict

On November 22nd, Levy Phillips & Konigsberg, LLP, Mesothelioma trial attorneys, announced the first-ever U.S. mesothelioma verdict connecting industrial talc with asbestos-related cancer. Industrial talc, an open-pit-mined mineral used in ceramic, paint, and paper manufacturing contains lethal, cancer-causing asbestos fibers responsible for a pottery artisan’s fatal mesothelioma.

R.T. Vanderbilt, Incorporated (“Vanderbilt”) claimed that talc from its New York State mines contained fibers that may have looked similar to but were not a lethal form of asbestos, a position that the company has maintained for decades. However, the Middlesex County Superior Court jury rejected the claims and award the New Jersey widow $3 million in compensatory damages. Hammill & Gillespie, Inc., which sold the industrial talc, was also found liable.

In the next phase of the trial, punitive damages will be sought against the defendants. It is scheduled to begin November 28th before the Hon. Ann G. McCormick, according to mesothelioma trail attorney Moshe Maimon, Esq., of Levy Phillips & Konigsberg, LLP who represents the estate of pottery artisan Peter Stanley Hirsch.

Early Symptoms of Mesothelioma

Early symptoms of mesothelioma can be general and non-specific, which is why many victims will have symptoms for mesothelioma 2 to 3 months before seeking assistance from healthcare professionals.

According to the American Cancer Society, symptoms of pleural mesothelioma (lining of the chest) may include:

• pain in the lower back or at the side of the chest
• shortness of breath
• trouble swallowing
• hoarseness
• cough
• fever
• sweating
• tiredness
• weight loss
• swelling of the face and arms
• muscle weakness

Symptoms of peritoneal mesothelioma (lining of the abdominal cavity) may include:

• belly pain
• weight loss
• nausea
• vomiting
• fluid or a lump in the abdomen

Keep in mind, these symptoms can also be attributed to other diseases. For many, the big factor is whether or not they've been exposed to asbestos in the past. If so, then the American Cancer Society recommends checking with your healthcare professional right away.

Are you a New York or New Jersey resident, have been diagnosed with mesothelioma and are wondering what to do next? Get the facts on Mesothelioma from NY NJ Mesothelioma.com by ordering your FREE information package on mesothelioma today.

Class Action Tobacco Lawsuit Validated by Lung Cancer Detection Findings

Class Action Lawsuit Validated by Finding that Scans Lead to over 90% Survival in Lung Cancer Patients Through Early Lung Cancer Detections – Levy Phillips & Konigsberg

A study released on October 26, 2006 by The New England Journal of Medicine regarding lung cancer detections further validates a significant class action tobacco lawsuit filed by New York City product liability lawyers, Levy Phillips & Konigsberg. The October 26th New England Journal of Medicine reports the results of a study demonstrating that annual low-dose CT screening offers early lung cancer detections (Stage 1) in 85% of the cases in which lung cancer is detected by this break-through technology. The 10-year survival rate in patients raises by 92% when lung cancer is detected early and promptly surgically removed.

The class action tobacco lawsuit asks Phillip Morris to accept tobacco corporate responsibility and provide annual low-dose CT Screening for a class of residents in New York State who are 50 years of age or older and have smoked a pack a day of Marlboro cigarettes for at least 20 years. These early lung cancer detections could significantly decreasing the number of deaths from lung cancer -- the No. 1 cause of cancer deaths.

“Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the United States and the State of New York. Over 160,000 people die annually in the U.S. from this awful disease,” said Jerome Block of Levy Phillips & Konigsberg. “Lung cancer deaths can be prevented since lung cancer is usually curable when diagnosed in its early stage. Philip Morris seeks to blame addicted smokers for what it calls ‘personal responsibility’. We are asking Phillip Morris to accept ‘tobacco corporate responsibility’ and save their customers’ lives by provide low-dose CT Screening of the chest for early detection of lung cancer,” says Mr. Block, one of the leading New York City product liability lawyers.

Mesothelioma Lawyers Sponsor NY NJ Mesothelioma.com

Levy Phillips & Konigsberg, LLP, mesothelioma lawyers with offices in New York and New Jersey, are sponsoring NY NJ Mesothelioma.com. NY NJ Mesothelioma.com provides asbestos mesothelioma information for New York and New Jersey residents. Visitors can get answers to their questions about asbestos mesothelioma:

• What is Mesothelioma?
• What physicians in New York and New Jersey area specialize in assisting asbestos mesothelioma victims?
• Where could I get asbestos exposure?
• What questions should I ask when choosing an asbestos mesothelioma law firm?

Additionally, NY NJ Mesothelioma.com offers a free information package on asbestos mesothelioma, which includes a comprehensive booklet entitled Asbestos in the Workplace, and an informative DVD.