Tag Archives: biopsy

Milwaukee Mesothelioma Lawsuit

Not long ago, I met with a man suffering from mesothelioma.  This man had worked his entire career at Wisconsin Electric also know as WE Energies.  The man worked at a variety of power plants in Wisconsin, including the Oak Creek power plant, the downtown Milwaukee plant, the Miller valley power plant in Milwaukee, the Pleasant Prairie plant near Kenosha, and various other Wisconsin Electric power plants and substations.  On a number of occasions, he would work around asbestos included electrical work, plumbing related work, and oil treatment work.  The asbestos was in gaskets, insulating pipes, used around wire and joints.  Asbestos was used because it was a good insulator.

Sadly, the man was living a nice life of retirement in Florida enjoying when he was diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma.  Mesothelioma is a deadly disease that is only caused by asbestos exposure.  He was suffering from shortness of breath when his doctor discovered fluid on his lungs.  Eventually, a thoracic surgeon was seen and he did a biopsy, which led to the definitive diagnosis of asbestos-related mesothelioma.

When I handle these mesothelioma lawsuits, the victims generally know that their disease is a fatal one.  However, the victims also know that the monies that are involved in these asbestos cases will do at least two things, punish the companies responsible (as many knew asbestos was carcinogenic and caused mesothelioma) and help the families of the victim of mesothelioma.

Wisconsin Mesothelioma Cases and Awards

Each asbestos mesothelioma case is different.  Thus, awards typically vary from six figures to eight figures since wrongful death by mesothelioma is horrible.  Our Wisconsin mesothelioma lawyers  have had excellent results working on behalf of asbestos victims and their families.  In the last five years, we have helped these families recover more than $21,000,000.00.

Again, every case is different, but to give you an idea of the type of case that was successful, I summarize one below.

John Doe was born and lived in Wisconsin most of his life.  He grew up in the Milwaukee area and lived in the Fox Valley for many years.  After retirement, his pulmonologist diagnosed him with pleural mesothelioma after a lung biopsy and PET Scan.  Mr. Doe had served in the U.S. Navy after high school, a typical fact for many mesothelioma victims, and was exposed to asbestos in the power systems, HVAC systems and mechanicals of various ships and at shipyards.

After serving in the armed forces, Mr. Doe also did a lot of maintenance and machinist work involving plumbing, electrical power, utilities, insulation, boilers, water systems, pumps, and hydraulics.  He worked many years for a couple of the Wisconsin companies facing asbestos litigation or alleged to have some link to asbestos or mesothelioma.

Mr. Doe’s mesothelioma eventually killed him, but before he died, he was most worried about his family and how they would do after he passed.  Though he died shortly after I met him, we continued to work for his family and eventually recovered more than $3,500,000.00.

Symptoms & Diagnosis of Mesothelioma

Symptoms of mesothelioma are not easily diagnosed especially in the early stage. In fact, typically after mesothelioma is diagnosed, patients often relate symptoms to their doctor that have been present for many months.  Symptoms of pleural mesothelioma (mesothelioma of chest) include low back pain, chest pain beneath arms, shortness of breath, trouble swallowing, cough, fever, fatigue, weight loss, hoarseness, facial swelling or swelling in the arms, and muscle weakness.  Symptoms of peritoneal mesothelioma include abdominal pain, weight loss, nausea, vomiting, and abdominal fluid or mass.  Certainly, if you have such symptoms visit a physician immediately, especially if you know you were exposed to asbestos.

Those having symptoms will undergo a physical to determine whether there are additional signs of mesothelioma or asbestos lung cancer. Patients with pleural mesothelioma will often have pleural effusion (fluid in lungs). Some may have ascites (fluid in abdomine) in cases of peritoneal mesothelioma, or pericardial effusion (fluid in pericardium) in cases of pericardial mesothelioma. If the foregoing shows the potential for a diagnosis of mesothelioma, then other tests will be done, including imaging tests like x-rays, CT scans, MRI scans, and PET scans. Tests may reveal irregular thickening of pleura, calcium deposits or fluid in pleural space.  Tests may also allow the doctor to begin determining the extent of cancer (staging). If a pleural effusion, ascites or pericardial effusion is found, the doctor may sample fluid for diagnosing cancer by a pathologist. Also, tissue samples may be taken via thoracoscopy, laparoscopy, mediastinoscopy or bronchoscopy, or sometimes surgery, thoracotomy or laparotomy, may be done by a surgeon.

Mesothelioma is generally very difficult to diagnose and in all cases, I always recommend a biopsy. In case of death, I also recommend an autopsy. A great place for information on the symptoms and diagnosis of mesothelioma is the U.S. National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes for Health MedlinePlus: Mesothelioma page, which I used along with the American Cancer Society website in writing this.

Mesothelioma cases

Mesothelioma caused by asbestos is a typical case handled by my Wisconsin personal injury law firm.  So for my first post, I thought I’d describe one to give readers a general idea of what type of case I handle involving asbestos.

We will call the client Mr. Smith.  Mr. Smith lived in Wisconsin and was diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma.  It was discovered via biopsy and he had other medical tests including a PET Scan and lung tap.  Mr. Smith was 65 years old.  Out of high school, he joined the U.S. Navy where he served as an auxiliaryman working with asbestos in HVAC and mechanical systems.   While in the Navy Reserves, he also worked with asbestos in various shipyards.  Ships he remembers serving on included submarines and a destroyer and the shipyards he worked in included Baimbridge, Charleston, Portsmith, Norfolk, Philadelphia, and Groton.  After serving in the Navy, Mr. Smith worked at a Wisconsin Electric Power Plant in a boiler room, another area replete with asbestos.  He then worked at a large medical center in Wisconsin doing mechanical work.  He was frequently in areas with pipes, boilers, and insulation all replete with asbestos.

When I met him, Mr. Smith was suffering with breathing difficulties caused by his mesothelioma.  He was somewhat angry with asbestos companies, but was more scared and worried about his family.  Mr. Smith died within nine months of hiring me to help  and though it’s of little consolation to his family, we worked to obtain more than $1,500,000.00 for them.  Every case is handled based on the facts, and the facts in his tragic case warranted this.  Though I could not do anything for Mr. Smith’s fear and anger, I take comfort in knowing that his family is being helped by my efforts.