Mesothelioma Settlements

Some mesothelioma settlements and verdicts have reached into the millions, but it's not easy to estimate how much a person will receive prior to filing a claim. Compensation varies on claimant’s diagnosis, medical history, companies sued, where the claim is filed, proof of negligence and other factors.

History has shown that an overwhelming majority of cases end in a settlement before reaching the courtroom. But some cases do go to trial, where a judge or jury can make a verdict that awards significant compensatory and punitive damages.
Settlement and verdict amounts often are tied to the cost of medical expenses, physical and mental distress, lost wages and bills that accumulate as patients move forward with an asbestos-related illness. Of course, compensation also is linked to the strength of the case, which brings into play the plaintiff’s specific diagnosis and health condition, as well as the degree of perceived liability on the part of one or more defendants.

Exact settlement figures are usually considered private, and claimants often are bound by confidentiality agreements. However, settlement amounts tend to reach the public eye from time to time.

Malignant mesothelioma is a rare, asbestos-related cancer that forms on the thin protective tissues that cover the lungs and abdomen. A combined approach to treatment is helping people improve their survival and ease symptoms.

Did you know that doctors diagnose an estimated 3,000 cases of mesothelioma annually in the U.S.? The majority of those are traced to job-related exposures to asbestos. Most people have the pleural type, which forms on the lining of the lungs, but the cancer can also form around the lining of the abdomen or heart.
Although asbestos use in this country has dropped in recent decades, a steady number of people are still getting mesothelioma. That's because this cancer can take anywhere from 20 to 50 years after asbestos exposure before symptoms appear, and an oncologist can make a definitive diagnosis.
While there's no cure for mesothelioma and the outlook is generally poor, researchers have made significant progress in understanding the cancer and developing new treatment options and alternative therapies.

Mesothelioma is caused by exposure to asbestos.

Mesothelioma is primarily caused by exposure to asbestos, though cases have been documented in children or other individuals with no asbestos history. Asbestos is a microscopic and naturally-occurring mineral that lodges in the pleural lining of the lungs and the peritoneal lining of the abdominal cavity. In most cases, several years will pass (up to 60) before mesothelioma develops in those who have been exposed to asbestos.
In many cases, those individuals diagnosed with mesothelioma that have been known to be exposed to asbestos may be eligible for financial compensation from asbestos manufacturers for their illness. Medical treatment costs can be significant with a mesothelioma diagnosis. However, financial assistance is available to help offset those costs for those diagnosed with mesothelioma that were exposed to asbestos.

While mesothelioma is typically advanced at diagnosis, treatment options are available.

Mesothelioma, while certainly an aggressive disease, is a manageable malignancy. While there is no cure for the cancer, mesothelioma treatment options may potentially include surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. A combination of Alimta® and cisplatin is currently the only FDA-approved chemotherapy regimen, though several clinical trials are currently in progress utilizing other drugs including gemcitabine and Onconase®, that may lead to new treatment options that provide a benefit for patients.
Radiation therapy is also utilized, but typically in conjunction with other treatment methods like surgery and chemotherapy. Surgical resection of mesothelioma is possible in early-stage-diagnosed patients. Diagnostic and palliative procedures such as thoracentesis and pleurodesis are also commonly performed in patients with malignant mesothelioma in order to minimize cancer-related symptoms. Alternative therapies have also been used effectively by many mesothelioma patients to assist in managing symptoms of the disease and conventional treatments.

Mesothelioma is diagnosed through a comprehensive combination of biopsy and imaging scans.

Mesothelioma can be a difficult malignancy to diagnose because the symptoms of the disease closely resemble other respiratory conditions, and because the pathology can be very difficult to distinguish from adenocarcinoma of the lung. For these reasons, misdiagnosis is not uncommon in mesothelioma patients. Symptoms of mesothelioma include chest pain, chronic cough, effusions of the chest and abdomen, and the presence of blood in lung fluid.
Diagnostic surgeries, including a biopsy, will typically be required to determine the type of malignant cells that are present in the body. Typically a body imaging scan, including a magnetic resonance image (MRI), computer topography (CT scan), and/or positron emission tomography (PET), will be required to determine the extent and location of the disease. Given how rare mesothelioma is, a formal staging classification exists only for pleural mesothelioma

Mesothelioma Cancer

Mesothelioma is an aggressive cancer affecting the membrane lining of the lungs and abdomen.

Malignant mesothelioma is the most serious of all asbestos-related diseases. Exposure to asbestos is the primary cause and risk factor for mesothelioma.
Making a correct mesothelioma diagnosis is particularly difficult for doctors because the disease often presents with symptoms that mimic other common ailments. There is currently no known cure for mesothelioma, but treatments such as surgery and chemotherapy can help to improve the typical mesothelioma prognosis and even increase one's life expectancy.
Three major types of mesothelioma exist and they are differentiated by the organs primarily affected. Pleural mesothelioma (affecting the lung’s protective lining in the chest cavity) represents about three-quarters of all mesothelioma incidence. Peritoneal mesothelioma, which affects the abdominal cavity, and pericardial mesothelioma, which affects the cardiac cavity, comprise the remainder.