A jury located in Broward County, Florida awarded $20 million to the family of a mesothelioma victim. The jury found the company that supplied the asbestos found in the asbestos containing joint compount, Union Carbide, 80 percent responsible for the exposure that occurred over the course of four months while the victim remodeled his home.

Despite the known risks of asbestos and asbestos-containing products, individuals can still be exposed to this harmful carcinogen. Additional information about asbestos and mesothelioma can be found on LegalView.com.

New Research May Yield Cancer Vaccine

Cancer cells worst enemy? The human body.

It might sound foolish and ignorant to say that the human body can defeat cancer cells, when in fact, it is quite the opposite. Researchers in Great Britain have done just that. Out of many types of cancer, mesothelioma and pancreatic cancers are the fastest and most deadly, resulting in limited options for treatment. Although certain treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation are used, they are not effective in abolishing the cancer, but rather just slow the progression of the disease.

Pancreatic and mesothelioma doctors have developed a new breed of drugs called the “TeloVac jab”. The vaccine, which is more of a treatment than a prevention, allows “the body’s own defences to fight cancer, stopping tumors in their tracks.” Normally, cancer cells are nearly indestructible to the human body’s immune system due to a cancer cell enzyme called telomerase. However, the vaccine enables the immune system to kill telomerase, leaving the cancer cells vulnerable. Not only can the vaccine be effective in mesothelioma and pancreatic cancer, but because the vaccine attacks the foundations of the structure of the cancer cell, it has the potential to treat many other types of cancer as well.

GemVax is a Korean company that is developing the TeloVac vaccine. They believe that the vaccine will not only have the potential to cure pancreatic cancer, but other cancers as well. Memorial-Sloan Cancer Center conducted clinical trials with people affected with asbestos-related diseases such as mesothelioma in order to find a vaccine. Cancer Research UK estimates that the vaccine could be accessible in treating pancreatic cancer by the end of 2013.

Jaundiced Baby

A letter published in The Australian Medical Journal said that naphthalene, a chemical compound found in moth balls, should be banned after it was linked to the death of a baby and brain injury in two others.

 The chemical, which was already banned by the European Union in 2008, causes a breakdown of red blood cells in about five per cent of children of certain ethnicities. Doctors say babies of  Asian, African, Middle Eastern or Mediterranean descent with glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency can develop a massive breakdown of their red blood cells when exposed to naphthalene. This enzyme deficiency which protects them from malaria puts them at risk for kernicterus, a rare neurological condition which can occur in babies with severe jaundice.

 Naphthalene brain injuries can occur when babies risk exposure if wrapped in clothing stored with the mothballs containing the toxin.

Naphthalene has been link with kernicterus since 2003. Health authorities in Australia already inform parents about the dangers of mothballs with naphthalene.  A ban on the mothballs is now the safest course of action. Currently, in Australia, mothballs containing naphthalene carry a warning label that explains that they can harm young children, but many agree that the labels give insufficient information.

LegalView provides information on unsafe drugs and medical devices to learn more about  your legal options contact LegalView for a free law consultation at 1-866-9LAW-NOW (1-866-952-9669). Our operators are available 24/7.  Visit LegalView for more information about finding a potential lawyer and about other information about toxins.

The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency is cautioning about illegal burning that can pollute the air. Open burning is considered illegal in many cases. Additionally, burning garbage, buildings, rubber, grease, asphalt or any other petroleum product always is prohibited. The Ohio EPA can fine those who violate the rule up to $250 a day and up to $1,000 a day for burning on industrial, commercial, institutional or municipal properties.
Ohio EPA Warns Against Illegal Burning

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The Center for Biological Diversity plans to file a lawsuit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for allowing pesticides to be used in the habitats of endangered species. The lawsuit alleges that the EPA did not adequately assess whether these chemicals are dangerous to these animals.
Environmental Group Sues EPA Over Bay Area Pesticides

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Some scientists fear that the Bush administration has developed a chemical testing program that is biased toward the chemical industry. A $76 million new program is underway to determine whether certain chemicals can affect human hormones. The program aims to specifically identify endocrine disrupters.
EPA’s Chemical Screenings Questioned

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A health advisory has been issued because of high algae levels found in several locations on Detroit Lake, which is about 60 miles from Salem, Oregon. Water sampling by the Forest Service has found that the algae produces toxins that are dangerous to humans and animals. The levels of algae are likely a result of dangerous toxins in the water.
Health Advisory Issued for Detroit Lake East of Salem

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The neonatal intensive care unit at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto remains closed after a premature baby died from the microbe serratia. Four other babies at the hospital also have tested positive for the serratia. Allison McGeer, the hospital’s director of infection control, says that “this bacteria is not terribly uncommon so we don’t know yet whether the other babies who are colonized have the same serratia as the baby that was infected.”
Neonatal Unit Remains Closed After Fatal Infection

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McPhail Associates Inc. had been hired by the city of Somerville, Massachusetts to test soil for contaminants from a former dry cleaner. McPhail, however, did not test Capuano School for contaminants; this is of great concern to parents of students at the school. In a report submitted to the city of Somerville in May 1999, McPhail said that they looked for the presence of “asbestos, total lead and pesticides/PCBs.” The study did not offer any documentation on the “presence of lead paint, asbestos, or radon gas within the existing dwellings.”
McPhail Did Not Test School Grounds for Neighbor’s Contaminant

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California officials asked federal regulators to allow California to establish its own strict auto emissions controls. They say that they plan to sue the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency if their request is turned down. Attorney General Jerry Brown says “We’re at a historic juncture. The Clean Air Act is clear that California can regulate emissions. I think the EPA administrator (Steve Johnson) will grant this, unless Bush or Karl Rove order him not to.”
California Demands EPA Allow State’s Stringent Auto Emissions Controls

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