-
FDA Grants New Mesothelioma Treatment Orphan Drug Designation
The United States Food and Drug Administration has granted orphan drug designation to a new pleural mesothelioma treatment called MVdeltaC. Orphan drug designation is a special category of approval for treatments targeting rare diseases. It both speeds up the development process and offers financial incentives to encourage researchers to continue their work on therapies that
-
Canadian Veterans Review Board Awards Compensation to Veteran with Cancer
Veterans who served in the U. S. military suffered significant asbestos exposure between the 1930s and 1980s, and as a result, they represent a disproportionate ratio of the mesothelioma diagnoses in this country. But mesothelioma is not the only cancer caused by asbestos exposure, and American veterans aren’t the only ones who were exposed. In
-
Study Reveals Asbestos-Related Mesothelioma Has Unique Gene Expression Pattern
A recent study has delivered significant results about the role that asbestos plays in the development of pleural mesothelioma. Researchers have found that patients who’ve been exposed to the toxic mineral have distinct gene expression profiles. Discovering that it’s the asbestos itself that alters gene activity may pave the way for the development of novel
-
Mesothelioma Victims Face Justice Delays Over Montana Talc Mine’s Bankruptcy Proceedings
Hundreds of people diagnosed with mesothelioma and other deadly asbestos-related diseases have found themselves caught in a legal battle that has delayed their pursuit of justice and compensation for years. The issue revolves around Barretts Minerals Inc. and its attempt to use bankruptcy protection to protect its parent company from personal injury and wrongful death
-
Asbestos in Philadelphia Schools Raises Concerns About Mesothelioma
Years after a Philadelphia teacher was diagnosed with mesothelioma and another is battling cancer, the Philadelphia Board of Education is negotiating with the U.S. Department of Justice over asbestos management. Though this issue is taking place in Philadelphia, it highlights the risk affecting thousands of students, teachers, and staff across the country’s aging buildings.
-
Italian Researchers Identify Promising Therapeutic Target in Mesothelioma Patients
Pleural mesothelioma is both one of the most aggressive forms of cancer and also largely non-responsive to treatment. To identify therapeutic targets, researchers from the IRCCS Humanitas Research Hospital in Milan, Italy, recently investigated a protein called glycoprotein non-metastatic melanoma protein B (GPNMB), which is secreted by tumor-associated macrophages. Their research confirmed that the protein’s
-
Louisiana Mesothelioma Victim Sues Asbestos-Contaminated Shipyard
Daniel Cantrelle, Sr., filed a damages lawsuit in Louisiana state court after being diagnosed with mesothelioma in June of 2024. He named several companies as defendants, including Avondale Shipyards, where he worked from 1960 to 1979. The company removed the lawsuit to federal court, arguing that it was entitled to government contractor immunity because it
-
Bispecific Antibody Plus Chemotherapy Delivers Positive Results in Mesothelioma Patients
Mesothelioma researchers from China have reported promising results following a Phase 2 trial that combined a bispecific antibody form of immunotherapy with platinum chemotherapy. The scientists presented their findings at the 2025 ASCO Annual Meeting.
-
World Trade Center Worker and Wife Awarded $117 Million After Mesothelioma Diagnosis
For the last three years, since William Durbec was diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma, he and his wife, Victoria, have been seeking justice for the harm they’ve both suffered. Last month, a New York jury awarded Mr. Durbec $78 million for his past and future pain and suffering, and an additional $39 million to Mrs. Durbec
-
Washington Supreme Court Allows Mesothelioma Victim to Sue Former Employer
Ever since Jeffrey Cockrum was diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma in 2022, he has been trying to hold his former employer, Howmet Aerospace, accountable. After his personal injury lawsuit was dismissed by both a trial court and the appellate court based on workers’ compensation rules, he appealed the case to the state’s Supreme Court, which decided
-
Study Examines Gut Microbiota’s Role in Mesothelioma Drug Response
Mesothelioma researchers from the United Kingdom have made a promising discovery that may help revolutionize treatment for the rare, asbestos-related disease. As part of the ongoing IST4 multi-center phase II clinical trial, they’ve found that bacteria living in the gut – collectively known as the gut microbiota – may play a crucial role in determining
-
Mesothelioma Victim’s Family Files Claims Against General Electric and Westinghouse
William Losurdo died of mesothelioma just 17 months after being diagnosed with the rare asbestos-related form of cancer. His family filed suit against the companies they blamed for exposing him to the carcinogenic material, and by the time they got to trial, only General Electric and Westinghouse remained. Though the two conglomerates petitioned for the
-
Study Provides “Molecular Roadmap” to How Asbestos Exposure Causes Mesothelioma
A collaborative study conducted by the renowned Sbarro Health Research Organization (SHRO) and the University of Siena in Italy has helped scientists better understand how asbestos exposure can lead to malignant pleural mesothelioma, the rare and deadly form of cancer that affects the lining of the lungs. The research provides an answer to the long-standing
-
Boiler Company’s Appeal of $38 Million Asbestos Lung Cancer Verdict Rejected by Court
In September of 2023, a New York jury ordered Burnham LLC to pay a former boiler worker and his wife $38 million in compensation for negligently exposing him to the asbestos that caused his lung cancer. In July of the following year, the same court and judge hearing the initial case refused to set aside the
-
Study Evaluates Outcomes of Different Therapies for Early-Stage Mesothelioma
The scourge of pleural mesothelioma is a global challenge, and researchers from around the world are working hard to evaluate existing treatments to find the best answers for their patients. A collaborative group of physicians and scientists recently conducted a meta-analysis of 14 different studies that compared multimodal therapies for early-stage malignant pleural mesothelioma, with
-
Appeals Judges Affirm Oregon Court’s Mesothelioma Ruling
After Oregon resident Richard Long was diagnosed with malignant pleural mesothelioma, he filed suit against fifty-one defendants whose products he says exposed him to asbestos. Foster Wheeler Energy Corporation removed the case to federal court under the federal officer removal statute, but Long argued the removal was unwarranted, and the U.S. District Court for the
-
Louisiana Court Sides with Mesothelioma Victim Against Shipyard
After being diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma, Nolan LeBoeuf, Jr., filed a personal injury lawsuit seeking compensation from Huntington Ingalls Incorporated, owner of the Avondale shipyards. Though the company attempted to remove the case to federal court based on having acted under an officer of the United States at the time, the U.S. District Court of
-
Mesothelioma Victim Blames Asbestos in Pizza Oven for Fatal Illness
David R. Kirby was diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma after working as a cook in pizza restaurants from the 1960s to the 1980s. He filed a personal injury lawsuit against both the Bakers Pride oven manufacturer and David Fabricators of New York, Inc., the company that supplied transite stone boards for use in Bakers Pride’s pizza
-
Mesothelioma Advocates Watch and Wait as EPA Reconsiders Chrysotile Asbestos Prohibition
Federal regulators have requested a stay of litigation regarding their recent asbestos ban as they reassess the landmark decision announced in March 2024, leaving mesothelioma advocates concerned that recent progress may be reversed. Though that litigation on the Environmental Protection Agency’s ban was pending in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, there are fears that
-
Exposure to Asbestos in Hospital Housing Blamed for Nurse’s Mesothelioma
Over the fifty years that she worked as a nurse, Monica Johnston of Belfast in the United Kingdom never dreamed that her career would eventually lead to a malignant mesothelioma diagnosis. But after struggling to identify the source of her asbestos exposure, the retired healthcare professional realized that the toxic substance was hidden in the
