Each year, advocates for patients with mesothelioma raise awareness of the disease on September 26th. Mesothelioma Awareness Day was established in 2004 by the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation.
There are activities both on September 26 and other surrounding dates to help educate and raise money for research to benefit current mesothelioma patients, and to remember those lost to the disease. The organization hosts online chats and provides answers to commonly asked questions when loved ones are diagnosed with mesothelioma.
The Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) works for the entire month of September each year to raise awareness of the disease. The ADAO’s mission is to educate the public and the medical community about asbestos-related diseases, and to prevent asbestos exposure.
Additionally, the ADAO is supporting research to find a cure, as well as for new screening tools which would provide earlier detection of asbestos-related diseases.
The Mesothelioma Program at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts will host a day of remembrance for those lost to mesothelioma on September 30, 2018. The event is entitled “A Day of Hope and Remembrance.”
The Meso Foundation hosts an International Symposium on Malignant Mesothelioma, which will additionally serve as the organization’s annual conference, on October 5, 2018 in New York City.
Many nations have put an outright ban on the use of asbestos. This is not the case in the United States. In fact, recent federal regulations appear to be potentially relaxing rules on asbestos use in new products. Advocates will continue to raise awareness not only for research, but also to convince politicians to put more restrictions and protections in place.
This matters when either permitting products to be manufactured with asbestos, or when regulating disposal and the clean-up of areas where asbestos is present.
Mesothelioma is a disease contracted from exposure to asbestos. The disease currently has no cure, although new technologies and treatments are being developed very rapidly. Exposure to asbestos can take years to develop into a cancer, whether it is a form of mesothelioma or some other cancer.
Many people were exposed to asbestos as part of their jobs, especially prior to 1980, when the material was outlawed from the manufacturing of most products in the United States.
Yet exposure can also occur in the home or in a school, if the home or school was built prior to 1980, and asbestos that was not safely removed was disturbed during a remodeling project, or through other damage where asbestos was used.
Mesothelioma symptoms can take up to 50 years to develop, which makes it hard to diagnose, treat, and obtain medical care. More awareness of this terrible disease can help in developing more advanced treatments, as well as prevention. If you have mesothelioma, we can help you get the compensation you deserve. Call the Philadelphia mesothelioma lawyers at Brookman, Rosenberg, Brown & Sandler at 215-569-4000 or contact us online for an initial consultation.