According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, after non-melanoma skin cancer, lung cancer is the second most common cancer for all men in the United States. In the year 2002, over 100,000 men and over 80,000 women were diagnosed with lung cancer. This disease can be quite aggressive and can progress rapidly. Roughly one-fourth of the patients diagnosed with lung cancer exhibit no symptoms of cancer even when they are diagnosed with advanced lung cancer.

Some lung cancer patients are victims of asbestos exposure. The majority of these patients were exposed to asbestos decades earlier, most in their place of employment. Mesothelioma, a direct result of exposure to asbestos, is an aggressive cancer which most often settles in the lungs. Malignant mesothelioma is a rare form of cancer and unfortunately there is currently no cure for this aggressive lung cancer.

Mesothelioma Lung Cancer

As the disease progresses many patients find themselves seeking more and more information and wonder about what happens in the final stages of lung cancer? Patients begin to wonder what should they look for, what symptoms will they see, what will tell them that something has changed… what will tell them they have entered the final stage of lung cancer. These are difficult conversations for both the patient and their family as well as the physician.

It is often when patients present to their healthcare provider with complaints of pneumonia, rib or shoulder pain, facial swelling, headaches and constant cough and their physician orders a chest x-ray that often a mass or tumor is found in the lungs.

A patient can be in the final stage of lung cancer before they ever seek medical treatment because the symptoms are so subtle and look so much like “something else”. Further medical testing will be performed to confirm the patient has lung cancer and to determine the exact stage of the cancer.

Small-cell lung cancer is the most aggressive form of the disease; it is also called oat-cell cancer because, its cells resemble oat grains. Like squamous cell carcinoma, this cancer usually originates in the large, central bronchi. The cancer frequently spreads (metastasizes) to the liver, bone, and brain. Although responsive to chemotherapy, small-cell lung cancer is rarely ever cured because it usually is not even discovered before it has metastasized or spread to other areas of the body.

Stage four is the final stage of lung cancer and it is the most advanced form of lung cancer. It is in this final stage of lung cancer that the cancer metastasized or invaded other areas of the body. Surgery at this stage is not likely recommended, unless it is for a relief of symptoms. However, massive quantities of chemotherapy and different combination of cancer fighting drugs are recommended to relieve some of the pain from the cancer and to possibly prolong the patient’s life span.

Many cancer patients will ask what happens during the final stages of lung cancer and it is the responsibility of the medical provider to educate the patient and their family on exactly what to expect in the final stage of lung cancer.

Symptoms such as extreme fatigue, dry mouth, shortness of breath, joint pain and often pneumonia are just a few of the symptoms which may be seen in the final stages of lung cancer. When the patient is in the final stages of lung cancer it is best to do everything possible to make the patient as comfortable as possible.

Be an advocate for the patient, ask for what you need, and work closely with the physician to find out what works best to help relieve or lessen symptoms… quality of life is an important marker of success in the final stages of lung cancer.

As a result of many manufacturers and distributors negligence in protecting workers from asbestos exposure, you may have the right to be compensated for your pain and suffering related to a mesothelioma diagnosis, your medical bills and possible loss of life.

First it is important to see if you are eligible for compensation through an asbestos lawsuit against the manufactures or distributors. Eligibility will be based on the statute of limitations, responsible parties and if asbestos exposure can be proven. The major concern is the statute of limitations.

Once the victim has been properly diagnosed a mesothelioma lawsuit must be filed within a few years to protect the potential claim. If the victim allows the statute deadline to pass then a claim cannot be brought against the manufacturer or distributor.

In order for a mesothelioma lawsuit to be filed the victim or victim’s counsel must be able to locate a company that is ultimately responsible for the asbestos exposure and is still in business in some form. The victim must also identify the asbestos exposure to establish a claim and the claim would have to state the specific asbestos product at a specific location.

Mesothelioma Attorney

The victim will need to hire a mesothelioma attorney to locate the information regarding the responsible parties, to confirm the statute of limitations has not passed and to confirm the asbestos exposure. Compensation will be determined by factors such as the laws in the victim’s state, responsible parties and loss of income.

Compensation for filing a mesothelioma lawsuit can vary from several hundred thousand to several million, depending on the severity of the claim. It is critically important to locate an experienced mesothelioma attorney so that the claim is handled appropriately and the victim is fairly compensated.

It is important to find the right attorney who has a great deal of experience handling mesothelioma cases. In hiring an attorney it is important to find someone who you can trust to lead such a crucial undertaking.These cases should only be handled by an experienced mesothelioma attorney. This is not the time for inexperience in the legal arena. Don’t do yourself or your family a complete disservice by hiring an inexperienced lawyer to handle your mesothelioma lawsuit.

Asbestos claims are very complex and often difficult to prove. It is for this reason that it is imperative that your mesothelioma attorney be able to establish a solid link between the development of mesothelioma and asbestos exposure. This is the crux of your entire case.

A diagnosis of malignant mesothelioma is a tragic and extremely emotional experience, and the last thing on a victim’s mind is the nightmare of legal logistics. Unfortunately, it is in the midst of the chaos when filing a mesothelioma lawsuit is so important.

A successful lawsuit is one of the few ways to ensure financial security for the family, and a rare opportunity to help offset huge medical expenses that pile up during mesothelioma diagnosis and treatment.

Mesothelioma Lawyer

Best questions to ask…

• How many mesothelioma cases have they handled
• How many mesothelioma cases have they settled
• How long did it take to settle the claim
• Will they pass the file on to another firm
• How many attorneys will be working on your file
• How long has the attorney been practicing law, particularly mesothelioma law
• How many grievances have been filed against the attorney, if any
• What is the average compensation for a mesothelioma case
• What are the odds for settling outside of court versus going to trial and seeking a jury verdict

These are simple questions to begin with and not to be underestimated; these are very important questions and ones that you must not rush through. Because mesothelioma can be a very aggressive cancer and because there is no known cure, your time is too valuable to waste.

You do not have the time to place your case in the hands of an attorney who has never handled a mesothelioma case as your family’s financial security is at stake.

It takes extraordinary focus and incredible compassion to fight decades of methodical lies by employers responsible for failing to protect their workers from asbestos exposure in order to win needed funds for a victim’s treatments and their family’s security.

A mesothelioma attorney can be located through the internet or your local bar association. If you have been diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma contact an attorney immediately, but remember to seek out only an experienced mesothelioma attorney.

A carefully selected mesothelioma attorney can be of great assistance to you and to your family.

In 1960 the first article was written that actually established mesothelioma as a disease related to the exposure of asbestos. This article highlighted more than 30 patients in South Africa who had been diagnosed with mesothelioma. Of these 30 patients some worked in the mines and others did not. But the important discovery was that someone had finally put the big picture together and discovered that this disease was showed a pattern… exposure to asbestos could eventually result in a malignant mesothelioma.

It was only two years later that the first case of malignant mesothelioma was diagnosed in an asbestos worker in Australia. The medical history of the patient indicated he had worked at an asbestos mine for two years, beginning fourteen years earlier. The fourteen year difference between the beginning of asbestos exposure and the development of malignant mesothelioma is a perfect indicator of the latency of this cancer.

The news became even more disturbing in 1965. An article published in the British Journal of Industrial Medicine that year established that people who lived in the neighborhoods of asbestos factories and mines, but did not actually work in them, had contracted mesothelioma. Tragically, in the town of Wittenoom, asbestos-containing mine waste was used to cover schoolyards and playgrounds, exposing countless numbers of children.

Despite the well documented proof that the dust associated with asbestos mining and milling caused asbestos related disease, mining continued to be an increasingly booming industry. Even with the knowledge that asbestos mining and milling was causing disease, no one stepped up to demand that the workers be protected with safer work conditions. No one intervened and the incidences of malignant mesothelioma continued to rise. It is simply inconceivable that the mine and milling conditions continued unchecked and the workers continued to be exposed to the asbestos that could ultimately take their lives.

It wasn’t until 1974 in Australia’s Bulletin magazine that the first public warnings of the dangers of asbestos were published in a cover story called “Is this Killer in Your Home?” But it wasn’t for another four years, in 1978, that the Australian Government actually decided to phase out the town of Wittenoom where you will remember that asbestos-containing mine waste was used to cover schoolyards and playgrounds, exposing countless numbers of children. In no time at all, the once booming town of Wittenoom became a ghost town…a town lost because of the failure of leaders to act on the knowledge that exposure to asbestos was for many leading to the development of a cancer called, malignant mesothelioma.

The former residents of the ghost town were gone but who would help them to fight the vicious disease many were left to face? Just one year after the Australian Government decided to shut down the town, the first lawsuits were filed for negligence related to the town of Wittenoom and the Asbestos Diseases Society was formed to represent the Wittenoom victims. This group is still in existence today and provides counseling, support services, economic assistance, advocacy, fund-raising for medical research, and community education.

Could it have been prevented? Could the loss of life have been less? Could a town have been saved? If changes had been made in the mining and milling industries when the early research began to show a direct correlation between the exposure to asbestos and the development of malignant mesothelioma then, yes, perhaps lives could have been spared and perhaps a town saved. We must learn from history…and work diligently so that another tragedy like Wittenoom never occurs again.