Mesothelioma and Women

While most victims of mesothelioma are men, women are not immune from contracting this deadly cancer. There is no demonstrated biologic reason why women who inhale asbestos would have different biological responses to harmful asbestos fibers than men. There is no data to show that female physiological mechanisms are any more protective against asbestos disease than those of their male counterparts.

Studies report that a little more than 20% of cases of mesothelioma occur in women. There is also some indication that there is a rising incidence of mesothelioma in women in the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom in recent years.

Mesothelioma is a disease that is strongly associated with asbestos exposure. The latency between exposure to asbestos and the diagnosis of mesothelioma can be many decades –twenty, thirty–even fifty years. It is not uncommon for women who contract mesothelioma to report to their physicians that they are unaware of how they were exposed to asbestos.

Many women did not work in occupations where they directly handled or were around asbestos. Studies show that only about one-fifth of women with mesothelioma had a history of occupational exposure to asbestos. For the majority of women with mesothelioma, their non-occupational exposure experience becomes much more significant. Studies show that for the majority of asbestos exposed woman with mesothelioma, most women were exposed to asbestos when living in a household where someone else worked with asbestos or by laundering asbestos-soiled clothing. These are called domestic or household exposures.

Recognizing the strong association of prior asbestos exposure to mesothelioma in women is something that is still lagging in some parts of the medical and scientific community. One reason is that the data that has been collected pertaining to the incidence of mesothelioma has been narrowly focused on looking at a person’s occupation. The statistical reporting often neglects to ascertain information about domestic or household exposures.

Since more women’s exposure to asbestos consists of domestic or household exposures, as opposed to occupational exposures, the female exposure experience is often under-reported. This “gender bias” in the medical and scientific literature makes it easier for asbestos companies to try to deny responsibility for causing mesothelioma in many women.

If you are a woman diagnosed with mesothelioma, the importance of finding a mesothelioma law firm that specializes in asbestos lawsuits will be even more important in order to achieve a successful and timely settlement or verdict.

The attorneys at Clapper Patti Schweizer & Mason are experts in this field, having practiced on mesothelioma law for close to thirty years, and have won millions of dollars for their clients.  Because of specializing in handling only asbestos cases, the attorneys are experts at determining where, when and how the exposure occurred and who was responsible.  For a free consultation, visit www.mesothelioma-attorney.com.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 28th, 2010 at 10:48 am and is filed under Mesothelioma. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.

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Mesothelioma, Fastest growing cancer in Women

No one would guess that the most rapidly increasing cancer in women is mesothelioma. In fact, even experts are astonished by this news. One thought is that the rise is linked to schools built in the 1960s and 70s that may have contained asbestos. However, it is unknown why it is increasing in women and not men. Incidences in men are increasing but not at the same rapid rate as in women. The fact that the ratio has changed suggest that the pattern of exposure has changes. Even though the exposure occurred decades ago this is news to us because it takes the cancer up to 50 years after contact to develop.

Most victims exposed to asbestos had worked in industries associated manual labor in the 1960s including construction and shipyards, jobs that mostly went to men. However, many of the buildings that were built during this time contained asbestos and just with a little exposure mesothelioma can occur. The majority of women suffering from mesothelima don’t even know that they have been exposed.

 The number of men still outnumbers women but the increasing rates in both sexes has changed.

Mesothelioma kills 3,000 people every year in the US but the death rate is not even expected to peak until 2015. Great Britain has the highest incidence of mesothelioma in the world, and the number of deaths increasing. The biggest concern being the rapidly increasing number of females who are dying of this cancer, and there deaths are a result of a low exposure.

To learn more about mesothelioma and you legal options contact LegalView for a free mesothelioma law consultation at 866-9LAW-NOW. Our operators are available 24 hours a day 7 days a week. 1-866-952-9669. Visit LegalView for more information about finding a potential mesothelioma lawyer and other information about environmental toxins, including asbestos.

Tags: Asbestos, Mesothelioma

This entry was posted on Monday, November 8th, 2010 at 4:33 pm and is filed under Asbestos & Mesothelioma. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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More Women Dying from Mesothelioma Despite “Low Level” Exposure

New reports out of the UK are noticing a disturbing new trend among patients who are falling ill and dying from malignant mesothelioma: more and more of them are women.

A recent report in the Daily Mirror’s ongoing “Asbestos Timebomb” campaign revealed that new figures being released about fatality rates connected with mesothelioma have shown an increase in the number of women being affected by the deadly cancer.

According to data released by the UK’s Health and Safety Executive, mesothelioma was mentioned as the cause of death for 384 women and 1,865 men in 2008. In 2007, 347 women and 1,826 men were killed by the deadly cancer. In 2005, 289 women and 1,759 men perished.

Because a majority of professions where workers were regularly exposed to asbestos were predominantly held by men during most of the 20th Century, mesothelioma has always been seen among men in much larger numbers than women. Some experts believe the sudden rise in female mesothelioma cases can be tied to female teachers who worked at a number of UK school built in the 1960s and 1970s that contained asbestos and caused “low level” exposure to the fibers.

However, a potentially more worrisome theory that has also been considered is that low level exposure to asbestos – such as exposure a wife would receive from asbestos particles brought into her home that were not properly cleaned off her husband’s work clothes – may also be more dangerous than previously thought.

“We don’t know why the incidence in women is rising. We need further research to determine the risk of low level exposure to asbestos,” John Edwards, a consulting surgeon, told the Mirror. “The increase in males is more steady and the fact that the ratio has changed suggests that the pattern of exposure has changed.”

Further demonstrating the rising number of women being affected by mesothelioma, the Mirror also found data from Cancer Research UK that showed the womens’ death rate from mesothelioma had increased by 57 percent between 1997 and 2007. Comparatively, malignant melanoma death rates increased by 49 percent, uterine cancer by 33 percent, and kidney cancer by 23 over the same time frame.

While the information used by the Mirror is based in the UK, it should nonetheless lead to some discussion regarding a potential rise in mesothelioma rates among women stateside as well.

If you or a loved one are suffering from mesothelioma and undergoing treatment, you may be able to pursue a mesothelioma settlement if a source of asbestos exposure can be found. Contact an asbestos attorney if you would like to pursue a lawsuit against a company or former employer.

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