The Lyon Firm is investigating NASA Lewis Research Center asbestos exposure claims on behalf of former Cleveland, Ohio employees and contractors. NASA was known to use hazardous asbestos materials that may have caused cancer and other serious illness to those who spent time in the facilities.
Former employees of NASA’s Lewis Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio (now Glenn Research Center at Lewis Field) may have faced a heightened risk for asbestos-related diseases, including lung cancer and mesothelioma. As recent as 2007, employees at the NASA Lewis Research Center contacted the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in fear that the work facilities were still lined with toxic material, and still an occupational health risk.
The NASA Lewis Research Center in Cleveland consists of approximately 150 buildings and more than 500 research and test facilities. Many of the buildings were originally built using asbestos material. Thousands of employees and contractors work at the Cleveland, Ohio location.
In the last decade, employees have expressed concern about a high incidence of cancer among employees who worked at specific buildings, known to be constructed with asbestos products. The inspection report from NIOSH indicates that former employees may have been exposed to asbestos prior to the major abatement projects that NASA commissioned long after asbestos was discovered. These employees may be at risk of developing mesothelioma or lung cancer because of exposure in the last 30 years.
Any NASA employee at Cleveland’s Lewis Research Center could be at risk of developing serious health issues, including asbestosis, lung cancer, and mesothelioma. Joe Lyon is a highly rated personal injury lawyer representing plaintiffs nationwide in a wide variety of toxic tort and mesothelioma claims.
When several people in a workplace are diagnosed with cancer each year, the workplace itself may be a contributing or primary health factor. Since 1985, twenty different types of cancer were diagnosed among Cleveland NASA employees, including seven cases of lung cancer, which could possibly indicate asbestos exposure.
Other types of cancer diagnosed included melanoma, colon, thyroid, bladder, pancreatic, cervical, uterine, head and neck, bile duct, brain, and stomach cancers. According to the American Cancer Society, asbestos is a known occupational cause of lung cancer, and possibly other forms of cancer.
Cancer clusters thought to be related to workplace exposure usually consist of the same types of cancer. When several cases of the same type of cancer occur and that type is not common in the general population, it is more likely that an occupational exposure is involved. When the cluster consists of multiple types of cancer, an occupational cause of the cancer is less likely.
However, the specific location at NASA Lewis Research Center, in buildings 500 and 501, where a large number of the cancer victims worked, raises the likelihood of an occupational hazard. And, of course, the buildings were known to have been built with asbestos materials, a known toxic and cancer-causing substance.
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Joseph Lyon has 17 years of experience representing individuals in complex litigation matters. He has represented individuals in every state against many of the largest companies in the world.
The Firm focuses on single-event civil cases and class actions involving corporate neglect & fraud, toxic exposure, product defects & recalls, medical malpractice, and invasion of privacy.
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The natural breakdown of asbestos products and subsequent sawing or cutting of the material creates dust and fibers that are inhaled and can lead to mesothelioma and other severe forms of lung cancer. Unlike some other ingested toxins which may be flushed from the body over time, asbestos fibers usually remain embedded in the lungs.
When the fibers are released into the air, they can be trapped in the lungs and cause scarring and inflammation.
Secondary exposure is also possible through fibers traveling on a NASA worker’s clothing. Due to health concerns, all new uses of asbestos were banned in July 1989.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) all consider asbestos a known carcinogen.
Each year hundreds of men and women are diagnosed with lung cancer, pulmonary fibrosis and mesothelioma—asbestos-related illnesses potentially due to past asbestos exposure. The vast majority of those who develop lung cancer and mesothelioma worked in an environment where asbestos was present. NASA facilities may have been filled with toxic materials, and employers may have failed to warn of the serious health risks of the job. Examples of related illness include:
Although adenocarcinoma lung cancer is associated with smoking, studies indicate exposure to asbestos may cause this form of deadly cancer. Inhaling asbestos fibers at the workplace over months or years put individuals at high risk for developing adenocarcinoma lung cancer, mesothelioma and asbestosis. In terms of duration or dose, the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has concluded that there is no safe level of exposure.
Mesothelioma is a serious illness that has been linked to asbestos exposure in medical literature with a latency period of 20-50 years after being first exposed to asbestos. A diagnosis of mesothelioma and lung cancer is overwhelming news for the individual and their family.
Most deaths from malignant mesothelioma in the United States are the result of exposures to asbestos decades prior. However, the continuing occurrence of mesothelioma deaths among persons under the age of 55 suggests ongoing occupational and environmental exposures to asbestos fibers, despite years of action by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) aimed at limiting exposure for much of the last 40 years.
To consider ways to assist in paying for medical expenses, you may talk to Attorney Joe Lyon for information on NASA asbestos exposure, treatment and compensation. Filing an asbestos exposure lawsuit helps to raise the awareness of job safety, while also securing the financial compensation available to workers through multiple sources.
NASA workers at the Lewis Research Center, or Glenn Research Center, may not show signs of illness for decades after exposure. When symptoms do appear, cancer may already be in a late stage. Seek medical assistance if you develop the following symptoms:
Most deaths from malignant mesothelioma in the United States are the result of exposures to asbestos decades prior. However, the continuing occurrence of mesothelioma and lung cancer deaths among persons under the age of 55 suggests ongoing occupational and environmental exposures to asbestos fibers.
Asbestos can be found in factories, warehouses, mills, homes built before 1980, construction sites, and in many military instillations. According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), there are 75 different jobs that could have exposed workers to asbestos, with those jobs primarily involving construction and manufacturing. Currently, thousands of American workers are still affected by asbestos each year.
Our Firm can help you identify the exposure sources and then initiate the proper claims so that will provide the security you and your family require.
When asbestos breaks down over time or with use, the fibers of the material can become airborne, presenting a risk of inhaling or ingesting the toxin. Asbestos is a cancer-causing agent, and those heavily exposed can develop scarring in the lungs and later develop lung cancer and mesothelioma.
Asbestos was widely used in piping, insulation, electrical components, machine parts, packaging, flooring, ceiling tiles, roofing, and in many building materials.
If you were exposed to asbestos at your workplace, and have developed cancer or a related illness, you are likely to qualify for compensation.
Asbestos was cheap, durable, fire-resistant and light, and was thought to be the perfect insulating material before research showed it was extremely hazardous to the health.
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