Mesothelioma Trial Awards Woman $5.2 Million

In an asbestos-related case taking place in Utah earlier this year, a woman received $5.2 million after becoming diagnosed with the rare cancer peritoneal mesothelioma.

Mesothelioma is a form of cancer primarily caused by asbestos exposure. In most cases, patients develop pleural mesothelioma after inhaling airborne asbestos fibers. However, in Vickie Warren’s case, she developed peritoneal mesothelioma, most likely from ingesting the fibers. Symptoms of this rare condition can take between 20 and 50 years to arise from the time of someone’s initial exposure to asbestos.

As a teenager and young adult, Ms. Warren helped her father build homes and duplexes. It is believed she was exposed to asbestos-containing joint compounds during this time. The joint compounds were used to seal seams on wallboards, ceilings and floorings within the homes. Ms. Warren lived in one of the homes for 14 years.

The trial was against two product distributors and a former mining and manufacturer of asbestos. The Salt Lake City jury determined that joint compounds made by Georgia-Pacific, LLP and Hamilton Materials, Inc., which used Union Carbide Corporation’s asbestos fiber products, failed to provide warning of any hazards and caused Ms. Warren’s malignant mesothelioma.

Union Carbide was a leading miner and manufacturer of asbestos from its King City mine in California. The company supplied asbestos to various product manufacturers for making a number of materials, including floor tiles, epoxy adhesives, sealants and wallboard joint compounds. Hamilton Materials and Georgia-Pacific sold construction products that contained asbestos mined by Union Carbide.

The jury awarded more than $1,400,000 in economic damages and more than $3,700,000 in non-economic damages. Ms. Warren has been combating the cancer since her diagnosis in July 2007. For many patients, the average prognosis is between four and 18 months.

Additional information on mesothelioma may be found through the Mesothelioma Center.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 21st, 2010 at 2:35 pm and is filed under Asbestos Exposure, Asbestos Litigation, Mesothelioma. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS feed. Responses are currently closed, but you trackback from your own site.