New York Personal Injury Laws

World War Two Workers Exposed to Asbestos

70,000 workers worked at the Brooklyn Navy Yard during World War 2, and they were all exposed to asbestos. Hi. I’m Joe Williams. I’m a mesothelioma trial attorney here in New York City. I want to talk to you a little bit about the Brooklyn Navy Yard.

Asbestos Exposure From Building Navy Ship

At the Brooklyn Navy Yard they were building ships since the time of the American Revolution. The site was 200 acres in size. Battleships like the USS Iowa and the Missouri were built there. The USS Antietam, an aircraft carrier was built and worked on there.

And I have a particular affinity for that ship because my father served on it during World War 2. In order to accomplish all of this work in the building and repair of US naval ships, there were foundries at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, with high heat and steam pipes insulated with asbestos.

 Asbestos Exposure In The Machine Shops

There was machine shops, where equipment was repaired and worked on for use in these giant US navy ships. There were warehouses where parts and equipment, including all manner of asbestos components were stored at the Brooklyn Navy Yard for use by the workers at the yard.

 Long Days of Exposure

During it’s height at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, ships were built and repaired around the clock, 24 hours a day. And that work using all kinds of asbestos insulation and asbestos containing products at the yard, exposed all of the workers to asbestos. These exposures to asbestos are especially important, because mesothelioma can be diagnosed up to 50 or 60 years after the time of exposure. So we have victims today who present with a diagnoses of mesothelioma. That happen because of exposures to asbestos decades and decades ago at the Brooklyn Navy Yard when those navy ships were being built. You have questions about mesothelioma, and exposures to asbestos. I’m Joe Williams, at our firm we answer questions for mesothelioma victims and their families every day. I invite you to call our office, we’ll answer your questions. Thank you.

Struggling With Depression

When you’re struggling A, it’s hard. It’s hard to do just about anything. People who don’t understand will say, “Just exercise,” or, “Be positive.” They don’t get it. A lot of TV ads say here’s a drug to fix your depression. Your doctor says the medication will work wonders, so you take their word. And you know what? Sometimes, it really does help you feel a lot better. You might have more energy, more motivation to do the things you love, to be with the people you want to be with. But as time goes by, maybe you suffer side effects. Maybe you just don’t think the pill is necessary.

Whatever the reason is, you decide to stop taking the drug. No problem, right? But, there is a problem. Antidepressants like Cymbalta carry a warning that reads, “Never stop an antidepressant medicine without first talking to a health care provider. Stopping an antidepressant medicine suddenly can cause other symptoms.” But the warning doesn’t explain what kinds of symptoms, how severe they might be, how to taper the dose or what a patient should do if depression or other symptoms recur. Is it really that dangerous to stop taking Cymbalta? Just ask the thousands who suffer withdrawal symptoms.

Drug manufacturer, Eli Lilly, ran multiple clinical trials on Cymbalta prior to releasing the drug on the market. They found that roughly 44% of patients experience withdrawal symptoms. In a strangely worded label, they stated that more than 1% of patients experienced severe withdrawal symptoms – a gross understatement. In another trial of more than 1,200 users, approximately 51% of patients experienced withdrawal symptoms. Dr.Joseph Glenmullen, Harvard clinical instructor in psychiatry and author of The Antidepressant Solution points out that the actual risk is more likely to fall in the range of 66% to 78%, given the drug’s half-life.

When a person takes an antidepressant, the body develops a certain dependence on it over time. Then, when the person stops taking the drug, the body reacts because it misses the chemicals in the drug. Half-life refers to the time the body takes to reduce the drug’s presence by half. Cymbalta’s half-life is extremely short, about 12 hours. When a user stops taking Cymbalta, the sudden absence of the chemical can result in immediate and often severe withdrawal symptoms. Share this video with your friends and family to raise awareness of the dangers of discontinuing use of Cymbalta.

Free Consultation

Millions of Americans take antidepressants. Please warn your loved ones of the serious withdrawal side effects. Share this video today to spread an awareness of the consequences of Cymbalta’s half-life. Have you suffered severe withdrawal side effects after taking Cymbalta? Talk to one of our professionals today at 888-LAW-8500. Our legal team has served over 20,000 victims across the country. You do not pay to consult with us, and if we end up working for you, we will get paid only if and when you do. Call today for a free consultation, at 888-LAW-8500. That’s 888-529-8500. And visit us online at lawyersusa.com/cymbalta.

By: Dan Cogdell

Iron Workers at the World Trade Center

Did you know that iron workers that worked at the World Trade Center during its construction were exposed to asbestos? Hi, I’m Joe Williams. I’m a mesothelioma trial attorney based in New York City and I could give you information about how iron workers were exposed to asbestos at the World Trade Center site during its construction.

 How Did They Get Exposed to Asbestos

Iron workers installed the steel eye beams that formed the metal framework of the buildings that composed the World Trade Center site. Those same steel beams were sprayed with asbestos-containing fireproofing spray. This fireproofing came in dry powder form. It was mixed with water and put into a gun and sprayed on the metal beams. The iron workers were nearby when that was happening – when the fireproofing was being sprayed into the air. That same fireproofing dried onto those beams. And iron workers, it would also be part of their duty to come back and with the overhead beams to install metal hangers onto them so that a drop ceiling could later be installed. Well, to install those metal hangers they had to scrape off that dry fireproofing causing asbestos dust which they breathe again.

Also iron workers, sometimes ornamental iron workers, did what’s called finishing work – things like railings throughout the World Trade Center – when other trades were doing their work. Work such as putting up sheetrock walls, or putting in floor tiles. These building materials contained asbestos. Now while the iron workers were doing their work the work of the other trades were exposing them to asbestos. Iron workers were exposed to asbestos dust in great quantities at the World Trade Center site during its construction.

Now you have mesothelioma and you have questions about asbestos exposure and about the World Trade Center site. I’m Joe Williams and at our firm we handle cases from mesothelioma victims and their families every day. I invite you to give us a call and we will answer your questions. Thank you.

Asbestos Exposure to Mesothelioma Diagnosis

How long does it take to get mesothelioma from exposure to asbestos? Hi. I’m Joe Williams. I’m a mesothelioma trial attorney in New York City. And to answer this question, we have to talk about the concept that doctors and scientist refer to as latency.

What latency basically means is the time from exposure to a known carcinogen, to the time when that patient is diagnosed with cancer. And to illustrate the point, I want to give you an example. Let’s say that I have a cough, and I cough into my hand.

I now have those germs on my hand. I then go and I meet you socially and say, “Hi, how are you? I’m Joe Williams. Nice to meet you.” And we shake hands. I then transfer, unfortunately for you, those germs to your hand.

You then wipe your face or your mouth, and the germs go into your system. Well, not surprisingly, three days later you start coughing. That cough, that cold, had a three day latency period. It’s very similar when we talk about mesothelioma.

The difference is the time frames involved. And it’s widely accepted by doctors and scientist throughout the world, that there is a very significant latency period for mesothelioma. From the time of exposure, perhaps a powerhouse worker working in a powerhouse in the ’50s.

Or a machinist mate on a aircraft carrier in the US navy in World War 2, could today be diagnosed with mesothelioma. The latency period, again widely accepted by the entire medical community, could be that long.

Anywhere from 20 years, 15 years, all the way up to 60 or more years, from the time of that exposure to asbestos to the time when that diagnoses of mesothelioma is made. Why is that important? It’s important because the nature of this disease requires us to journey back, and evaluate those exposures that occurred decades, sometimes many decades ago.

And it’s important to be able to take a thorough occupational history, to figure out all the possible exposures to asbestos for a mesothelioma victim. Now, you may have many more questions about latency as it relates to mesothelioma, and I can provide the answers.

I’m Joe Williams, and in our firm we deal with these issues every day. We represent victims of mesothelioma every day, and we can answer your questions, and we’ll be happy to do that. So look at the number below and call our office, and we’ll answer your questions. Thank you very much for watching. I hope this was informative.

Cases Involving Transvaginal Mesh

When you go to a doctor, you usually assume the solutions they recommend won’t hurt you, and if there are risks you expect them to tell you so. But no matter how well-intentioned medical professionals are, the safety of their recommendations depends on the source of their information. Consider cases involving the transvaginal mesh patch.

When this medical implant came on the market it was celebrated as a solution to pelvic organ prolapse and stress urinary incontinence in women. As with all such products, much of the marketing targeted doctors. Manufacturers showed the research they conducted and recommended this new device as a quality solution for the doctors’ patients. Doctors studied the information they were given and did their best to understand the risks and benefits, but when a device is first put on the market little is actually known about it. Going off of what information they’ve been given, doctors concluded whether they believe this product would be good for their patients.

What Manufactures Do Not Tell Consumers

Manufacturers of such products are expected to disclose the related risks, but sometimes manufacturers haven’t conducted enough research to know all the risks and other times they simply hide some of what they do know leaving doctors and patients with only part of the story. The transvaginal mesh patch turned out to be a product with many problems. Six women have already taken these companies to court and the juries have found in favor of the women.

In fact, juries have been so disgusted that they have ordered these big corporations to pay penalties. Because of this implant women have suffered the following problems: mesh erosion; when the mesh erodes and protrudes through the vaginal wall, organ perforation; when the mesh erodes and cuts other organs such as the bladder, extreme pain, POP or SCOI recurrence, urinary problems, scarring of the vagina, infection, bleeding, nerve damage, and pain associated with sex. Many women have undergone multiple surgeries, sometimes more than a dozen follow-up surgeries because of the pain and damage caused by the implants.

Endo & Ethicon Litigation

One manufacturer, Endo, has already begun the settlement process with many thousands of patients. Another manufacturer, Ethicon, has already settled a case of their own. All cases like this have a limited timeline for filing complaints so victims can be compensated. We don’t know the exact timeline, but with Endo wrapping things up with victims of their implant we can only recommend that you move quickly to ensure that your case is positioned for the best possible result. We know this is a personal topic and can be difficult to talk about.

If you’ve been injured by the transvaginal mesh patch, we invite you to call us. Our team is here for you. We do care about you and we want to help you determine whether you can be compensated for your losses, and you don’t need to worry about any fees. If we take a case on your behalf we will only get paid if and when you do. Call today for a free consultation at 888-LAW-8500. That’s 888-529-8500.

By: Steven Gacovino

Medical and Dental Malpractice Negligence

When you’re talking about medical or dental malpractice, you’re really talking about negligence. To prove a medical or dental malpractice case, we must show the doctor has failed to meet accepted standards for medical care in your community. Some examples of medical or dental malpractice include failure to diagnose breast cancer or an impending heart attack. Malpractice may also stem from a surgical error. For instance, an oral surgeon may place an implant too close to a nerve. To know if you have a valid malpractice case, it’s essential that an experienced lawyer reviews your medical records and consults with appropriate medical experts. The selection of the right medical expert in your case is extremely important. I will only work with a doctor who truly believes you have a valid case. If you feel you or a loved one has been injured as a result of the negligence of a doctor or dentist, and you would like to arrange a free consultation, please contact us or chat with us on our website.

 Steps Specialists Take While Treating Mesothelioma

If you’ve been diagnosed with mesothelioma. So what types of doctors treat patients with mesothelioma? Hi, I’m Joe Williams I’m a mesothelioma trial attorney. I want to talk to you about some of the doctors that see mesothelioma victims. Initially, when a mesothelioma patient first presents with the signs or the symptoms of mesothelioma they see their family doctor, their intrest, their primary care doctor. That’s when a patient is talking about general weakness, malaise, maybe they’ve lost weight, maybe they’ve lost a lot of weight, they have shortness of breath. They walked up two flights of stairs and boy they’re huffing and puffing. They normally walk down the block a couple of blocks to get the newspaper every morning but now that’s a little but more difficult than usual. They go in to see their primary care doctor and explain. The doctor says let’s take an X-ray, let’s do some test. Let me send you on to a specialist. Now, usually after the primary care doctor the next doctor that a mesothelioma patient will see is a lung doctor, a pulmonologist. The pulmonologist is a specialist who deals with issues related to the lungs. So the pulmonologist is a doctor who’s probably seen mesothelioma patients before and can understand those signs and symptoms with a little bit more detail and can order some different tests. Things like a PET scan or perhaps based on the presentation of the tumor in the chest from PET scans or CAT scans or even from X-Rays the pulmonologist will refer the patient on to a surgeon. This surgeon is tasked with the job of finding out definitively what this is that is in this patient’s chest. They do that usually through a biopsy, a tissue biopsy that’s either done through a needle biopsy or through a surgical biopsy intraoperatively, often done with either a minimally invasive procedure called a video assisted thoracoscopy sometimes referred to as a VATS. Or if there’s difficulty locating the tumor there’s another procedure which is a more open procedure and that procedure is called a thoracotomy. But either way the area where the tumor is visualized is biopsied by the surgeon and that tissue is sent to a pathology lab to get a definitive diagnosis of what it is that’s growing in this patient’s chest. Now, once a diagnosis is made pathologically by a pathologist looking through a microscope at a slide at the cells and determining based upon different standing that can be done. That this is in fact malignant mesothelioma that it’s in this patient’s chest. Once that’s decided and determined then the decisions are, “What are we going to do for this patient?” There’s surgical options and that’s where the surgeon continues to play a role. There’s chemotherapy and radiation options. Now, chemotherapy is administered by an oncologist. So that surgeon would refer the patient to a caner specialist. An oncologist who would then consult with and evaluate the patient and their medical records and all their signs and symptoms and make decisions as to what type of drugs, pharmaceutical drugs, chemotherapy drugs can be administered to this patient to reduce the size of the tumor. Or perhaps to debulk it or reduce the size of the tumor in anticipation of a future surgery. Or if the tumor is advanced to just control or reduce the size of the tumor for palliative care, to reduce the symptoms or the pain response that a patient’s having. All of these doctors work together and coordinate with each other to assist a mesothelioma patient as they go through a diagnosis of mesothelioma. Now why am I telling you call this? I’m telling you because you have questions about mesothelioma. I’m Joe Williams, I’m a mesothelioma trial attorney and we deal with issues related to mesothelioma each and everyday. We represent patients and their families as they struggle through a diagnosis of mesothelioma. If you have questions I invite you to call our office and we’ll answer your questions. Thank you.

Maintenance Man Diagnosed With Mesothelioma

You worked as a maintenance man, and now you’ve been diagnosed with mesothelioma, and you’re wondering how did you get this disease? Hi, I’m Joe Williams. I’m a mesothelioma trial attorney, and I want to give you some information about the potential asbestos exposures that maintenance men would have confronted while they were at work and on the job.

Possible Exposures To Asbestos

Now a maintenance man in a building is responsible for the entire building. If it’s a six story apartment building, or an 80 story skyscraper in Manhattan, a maintenance worker or maintenance man could have duties and responsibilities throughout the building. For example, in an apartment building, a maintenance man might have to everyday work on maintaining the boiler system. Older boilers sometimes needed water poured into them. Boilers have to be checked. If there was a necessary repair that had to be made, if it was a simple one, a maintenance man could effectuate that repair. If it involved plumbers or tradesmen coming into the site, the maintenance man would be on site supervising. Why is that important? Because the boilers years ago were covered with asbestos insulation, and work with the boilers, whether by the maintenance man himself or by others in his vicinity, could cause asbestos dust to go into the air, exposing everyone in the room to asbestos that could cause mesothelioma.

A maintenance man is responsible for the tenant spaces in the building. In an apartment building for example, a tenant moves out, that apartment has to be painted. The walls had to be prepared and smoothed out. Cracks or holes in the walls had to be filled with joint compound. Joint compound contained asbestos before 1977. When it was sanded down, the dust would go in the air, exposing anyone in the room, including the maintenance personal, to asbestos dust, dust that can cause mesothelioma.

A lot of apartments and a lot of commercial spaces had floor tile that contained asbestos. When it was removed or replaced, chipping up the old floor tile caused asbestos dust. Cutting, sanding, installing new asbestos floor tile caused asbestos dust to be breathed by any worker, any person in the area of the work.

These are all potential exposures that maintenance men, maintenance personal, could have during the course of their work. It’s the lifetime work around asbestos that causes mesothelioma.

 Contact Us with Questions or Concerns

Why am I telling you all this? It’s because you have questions about mesothelioma and what types of exposures maintenance personal could face when they’re working on the job.

I’m Joe Williams, and at our office we handle cases for victims of mesothelioma everyday. We deal with these issues everyday. I invite you to call our office and we’ll answer your questions. Thank you.

Dentists and Dental Technicians Exposed to Asbestos

Did you know that dentists and dental technicians are being diagnosed with mesothelioma from their work in dental labs years ago?

Hi, I’m Joe Williams. I’m a mesothelioma trial attorney, and I want to talk to you about some of these exposures to asbestos. So someone who now is an older gentleman, and is a dentist, and has been a dentist their entire career is diagnosed with mesothelioma, and they’re trying to figure out how could they have been exposed to asbestos, because all their doctors are telling them that the mesothelioma diagnosis is from asbestos. It’s caused by asbestos. So they journey back on the history of their life to determine if there’s ever a time when they worked with asbestos.

 Possible Ways of Exposure

And what we’ve found is that back when they were in dental school, they worked making crowns, and they used a method called the lost-wax method. And what that means is that wax is placed into an object, and it is used to make a mold for the crown. But what’s important about this process is that the lining underneath the wax is an asbestos-containing paper, and it’s used to withstand the high heat of when this mold is placed into the oven.

Now the dental technician – or the dental student in the example I’m giving, who later became a dentist – had to cut that paper and manipulate it, and it’s made of asbestos. And in doing that repeatedly over a course of time, exposed that person to asbestos dust, asbestos fibers that they breathe, which cause them to – decades later – be diagnosed with mesothelioma.

 Contact Us with Questions and Concerns

Now I’m telling you this information, because you have questions about Mesothelioma and how it is caused. I’m Joe Williams. At my office, we deal with issues like these every day, and we answer questions every day for mesothelioma victims and for their family members .

If you have questions, I invite you to contact our office, and we’ll answer your questions.

Thank you.