Veterans and Mesothelioma
Those that have served the United States in one of its wartime engagements often bring home the memories of battles lost and won and may be affected by their time in the service in ways that are not immediately obvious, or that can be seen on the surface. Unfortunately, veterans sometimes come home bearing more than just scars inside and out - they can also be carrying the precursor to a malignant form of cancer known as mesothelioma. Mesothelioma is caused by asbestos fibers that are inhaled and become lodged in the linings of the lungs, stomach or heart. Once these fibers begin to cause an abnormal cell division, tumors develop and then spread to other membranes in the chest, and at a very rapid pace. Often, veterans will not even know that they have a potential to develop this form of cancer before the cancer begins to act aggressively and a late diagnosis of this cancer can mean a significantly reduced lifespan. But why are veterans at such high risk?
During the first part of the twentieth century, the many uses of asbestos - a naturally-occurring crystalline mineral - were discovered. Easily mined across the United States, asbestos could be used in a number of ways, the most wide-ranging being as a form of insulation. Navy shipyards were full of asbestos as it was put into the hulls and engine rooms of ships, in order to both keep them safe on open ocean waters and prevent fires on-board from being disastrous. Workers in shipyards were exposed to airborne asbestos on a daily basis, but it was often outdoors and only during their shift. Military service personnel, in contrast, were often stationed on board a vessel for months at a time, constantly breathing in asbestos fibers that were floating around the ship, some of the fibers becoming stuck in their lungs. Once in place in a membrane, an asbestos fiber cannot be cleared, and many veterans came home with no symptoms of an aggressive cancer, but with the potential for it lurking just under their skin.
When an asbestos fiber begins to cause a tumor, it is only a matter of time before more develop and before a point is reached where the tumor is inoperable. Most patients diagnosed with mesothelioma will be given a life expectancy of between nine and twelve months, but the earlier this form of cancer can be detected, the greater the chance that a surgical option will be successful. In rare cases, a tumor can be excised completely, but more often a lung or a part of a lung will need to come out in order to give a patient a fighting chance. The rarest form of mesothelioma - pericardial mesothelioma - affects the heart, and surgery is rarely a viable option. Veterans may be compensated for their condition by the military, but they will have to prove that they were on board a ship with asbestos present and that their form of the disease meets the criteria for compensation.
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