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Asbestos Induced Lung Cancer

If you or a member of your family is suffering from lung cancer caused by exposure to asbestos, it is possible that our specialist personal injury lawyers could help you to claim compensation.  Contact us today on 0800 032 8511 for claim advice, or by completing a claim enquiry form. 

For information and claim advice about mesothelioma, a particular type of lung cancer attributed to asbestos exposure, please see our mesothelioma information page.

Asbestos Exposure
Industries at Risk of Exposure to Asbestos
Lung Cancer Caused by Asbestos
How is Lung Cancer Diagnosed?
Treatment for Lung Cancer
Claiming Compensation for Asbestos Related Lung Cancer
Compensation

How Much Compensation am I Likely to Receive?
Successful Compensation Claims for Asbestos Related Lung Cancer
Letters of Thanks from Our Clients
Our Specialist Solicitors

Asbestos Exposure

Exposure to asbestos without the relevant protection can cause a variety of serious illnesses and conditions, including lung cancer.  To develop lung cancer as a result of working with asbestos generally takes from around 10 to 40 years after the initial exposure.

The risk of developing lung cancer is far greater among those exposed to asbestos than the remainder of the population and even greater again for people in this group that are smokers.  One study indicated that asbestos workers who also smoked were around 90 times more likely to develop lung cancer than people who had not smoked or worked with asbestos.

Employers have a responsibility to protect their employees from hazardous substances in the workplace.  If an employer exposed you to asbestos without the relevant protection, and you developed an illness as a result, you may be entitled to claim compensation.

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Industries at Risk of Exposure to Asbestos

Employees in certain industries are more likely to come into contact with asbestos through their work than other people.  Some of these industries are:

• Building or demolition workers
• Heating engineers
• Roofing contractors
• Plasterers, painters and decorators
• Electricians
• Plumbers
• Caretakers
• Gas installers
• Ventilation engineers
• Surveyors
• Telecoms engineers

In general, if you have to work on a building that was constructed or refurbished prior to 2000, there may be asbestos present.

Of course, anyone currently suffering from an asbestos related disease is likely to have been exposed many years ago.  It was common for people with the following jobs to work with or around asbestos:

• Shipbuilders
• Asbestos and asbestos product manufacturers
• Vehicle mechanics
• Boilermakers
• Construction workers
• Members of the Armed Forces
• Steel Erectors
• Steelworkers
• Fitters
• Riggers
• Cement workers

These lists are by no means exhaustive, so if you are concerned that you may have been affected by exposure to asbestos, it is important to seek medical advice at the earliest opportunity.

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Lung Cancer Caused by Asbestos

Airborne asbestos particles can float in the air and become stuck onto clothing, and can therefore be inhaled.  The fibres can then become lodged in the lungs, which damages cells and increases the risk of a person developing lung cancer.

Lung cancer is classified as either small cell lung cancer (SCLC) or non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Non-small cell lung cancer makes up around 4 out of every 5 lung cancer cases.  There are three types of non-small cell lung cancer, namely:

1. Squamus Cell Carcinoma - The most common form, which develops in the bronchi or air passages and is often caused by smoking.
2. Large Cell Carcinoma - Similar to squamus cell carcinoma but characterised by large, rounded cells.
3. Adenocarcinoma - Which develops in the glands that produce mucus in the linings of the airways.

There is also a particular type of lung cancer, called mesothelioma, which affects the area around the lining of the lungs and is almost always caused by asbestos.

It is generally believed by the medical profession that if lung cancer develops alongside asbestosis then the lung cancer was probably caused by inhaling asbestos. If asbestosis is not present then it is much more difficult to prove that the lung cancer was caused by asbestos. Expert legal and medical opinion are always needed to assess whether a claim can be made for lung cancer

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How is Lung Cancer Diagnosed?

There are several methods that doctors use when testing for lung cancer.  These include x-rays and CT scans to take a picture of your chest, biopsies, where a small sample of lung cells are taken and tested and sputum tests, where phlegm is tested for the presence of cancerous cells.

Other tests, such as brain scans and blood tests, may be performed to check whether cancer cells have spread to other parts of the body.

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Treatment for Lung Cancer

If lung cancer is diagnosed at an early enough stage that it can be treated, or its progress slowed or halted, there are various forms of treatment that may be used.

Surgery may be carried out to remove a tumour, treatment with high energy rays known as radiotherapy can be used to kill cancer cells or anti-cancer drugs can be administered, which is known as chemotherapy.

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Claiming Compensation for Asbestos Related Lung Cancer

It is possible that, if you have been exposed to Asbestos through your working conditions and have developed lung cancer, you may be able to claim industrial disease compensation.  In every case, medical evidence will be required.  Detailed expert evidence is often also required in disease cases to show that the condition suffered by a claimant was caused by exposure to a particular substance.

In any personal injury claim it is necessary to show that the person you are making a claim against owed you a duty of care, that they breached that duty of care (were negligent), and that the injury you sustained was a reasonably foreseeable consequence of that negligence.

Often, examinations will also need to show that Asbestos fibres are present in the lungs, or that there is evidence of Asbestosis, Pleural Thickening or Pleural Plaques.

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Compensation

There are two elements to a compensation award.  The first is for the pain and suffering you may have gone through and what is known as loss of amenity.  This is called general damages and can include an award for your inability to do things after the accident that you used to be able to do before, eg, wash your car, look after your garden, walk the dog, etc.  The award for loss of amenity can be for a short period after your diagnosis or for ever if that is what the medical evidence supports.

The second element of a compensation award is for your losses and expenses and is known as special damages.  It is important to keep receipts for any expenditure you have related to your illness, so that these can be reclaimed.  The aim is to put you back in a position financially as if the accident had never occurred.

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How Much Compensation am I Likely to Receive?

The details of each case are assessed individually, as a number of factors affect the amount of compensation awarded in a industrial disease claim. These include the severity of the condition, any loss of earnings and other losses related to the illness (for example medical expenses and care costs).

Awards made in previous claims of a similar nature are used as a guideline however, together with general guidelines from the Judicial Studies Board. Our ‘How Much’ section provides further information and you can find details of previous settled cases in our news and success stories sections.

 

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Successful Compensation Claims for Asbestos Related Lung Cancer

Below are details of cases handled by our specialist disease lawyers on behalf of the victims of asbestos related lung cancer and their families:

• Lung cancer can develop through a variety of causes, one of which being smoking. However, when a smoker has also had substantial lifetime exposure to asbestos, the risk of developing lung cancer can more than double. This was the tragic result for one of our clients who inhaled asbestos fibres during his life working in the shipyards and power stations for a wide range of employers.
  
  As with many claims for asbestos related lung cancer our client, a plumber, had worked in areas where asbestos was routinely used in pipe lagging. It was common practice that it would be cut, smashed or broken up to allow access to bolts and the pipework. Sometimes asbestos dust was blown off the turbine covers using pneumatic hoses, resulting in dust being dispersed into the air. Asbestos debris and dust was then swept up, creating yet further exposure to asbestos fibres in confined spaces. His widow has recalled that as young apprentices he and his workmates would play football with lumps of asbestos.
  
  Retiring early herself due to ill-health, his widow became her husband’s carer as the disease progressed. It left him breathless, with pains in his chest and unable to sleep for very long. During this traumatic period, she was diagnosed with exhaustion as she tried to cope with the 24-hour care that he needed. Eventually her husband was admitted to a hospice where he died.
  
  Only in his early 60’s our client and his wife could have expected to enjoy many years of happy retirement. His widow had relied heavily on him for household chores and heavy lifting and now has to rely on the support of her daughter and son-in-law as well as paying for work to be done to maintain the home. As she does not herself drive she had also relied on him to take her shopping etc. The weight of memories in their marital home following his death was so distressing that eventually she decided to move.
  
  This was an extremely complex case, which our specialist industrial disease lawyers took over from another firm, very close to the expiry of the limitation period for making a claim. There were a substantial number of defendants, all of whom initially denied liability. Some of the defendants were no longer in existence. Our lawyers were able to track down witnesses to the practices engaged at these workplaces, including one who had worked with our client.
  
  Sadly, our client died before his claim could be completed. When a Coroners Inquest confirmed that the post mortem revealed evidence of asbestosis the defendants then admitted liability. Our industrial disease lawyers were able to secure £80,000 for his widow in compensation for this lung cancer claim.
• In the 1990’s, many asbestos compensation claims were successfully fought to obtain an award of provisional damages to compensate claimants who had developed a work related lung cancer after having been negligently exposed to asbestos. This allowed the claimant to reactivate an award at a later date should they develop further asbestos related diseases.

  One such victim later developed asbestos related lung cancer and died shortly afterwards. Our client was the widow of the victim, who had worked most of his life in the shipyards. She did not have to prove employment or breach of duty as this had already been proved in the earlier asbestosis claim. The defendants did not enter a defence.

  After the initial diagnosis of asbestosis, her husband had tried to carry on as normal a life as possible, although difficulties with breathing meant he could not do all the things he had previously been able to. Just over a year before his death, he began to suffer the more serious symptoms of asbestos related lung cancer. When his breathing deteriorated significantly, he went to see his GP who initially prescribed antibiotics. However, when this failed to have any effect, he was admitted to hospital.

  Having several x-rays, biopsies, scans and even cameras inserted into his lungs, he was eventually diagnosed with lung cancer. It was however, only after his death that the diagnosis of asbestos related lung cancer was confirmed.

  He was only in his 70’s with a wife, children, grandchildren and even great-grandchildren on whom he doted. The news was devastating of course, but his biggest regret was that he would not see his grandchildren grow up. A keen footballer, he loved to take his grandsons to the local matches.

  Becoming more breathless, he tired easily when walking and towards the end had to use a walking stick for support. Eventually however, he was unable to venture out at all, depending on oxygen almost continuously to alleviate the symptoms of this devastating illness, lung cancer. Friends called on him as he was unable to get out and he greatly appreciated their company and catching up with events.

  A few months before he died, he became unable to manage the stairs and the couple moved downstairs to sleep. He lost a lot of weight as his appetite deserted him, but despite being very depressed at times, he retained his sense of humour until the end.

  Due to the complexities of this case, it was difficult to negotiate an agreed settlement for lung cancer compensation, and court proceedings were issued. However, just before trial, our specialist industrial disease lawyers were able to secure an offer from the defendants of over £100,000 in compensation and our client, on behalf of the estate of her late husband, accepted the offer.

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Letters of Thanks from Our Clients

The following are extracts from letters of thanks to our solicitors.  Some are written by victims of lung cancer and others by family members on behalf of relatives who have died:

• On behalf of my family, may I take this further opportunity to thank you, your staff, the Union and any other parties involved in the successful settlement of the claim.  We are very pleased with the service provided.

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Our Specialist Solicitors

Making a personal injury claim for a work related illness can often be a daunting experience, so most people prefer to seek specialist advice from a reputable solicitor.  The Legal Line lawyers are highly experienced in all areas of industrial disease and can offer assistance, guidance and claim advice to any person who believes that they, or someone close to them is suffering from asbestos induced lung cancer.

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