2010 Newsfeed

Asbestos Scandal.

Irresponsible policies could cause an epidemic of malignant lung disease. Viewed through an electron microscope, asbestos fibres look like thin glass straws, some no more than a fraction of a micro metre wide. If inhaled, they penetrate the soft alveoli of the lungs and the membranes that line the chest cavity. And there they stay. Over time, damaged cells can cause a malignant disease called mesothelioma, which often kills people, horribly, less than a year after diagnosis. Before the widespread industrial use of asbestos began in the late nineteenth century, malignant meso thelioma was unheard of, yet it is now responsible for tens of thousands of deaths around the world every year. After the link between asbestos exposure and the disease was convincingly made in 1960, responsible nations eventually took strong measures to remove the mineral from commercial products and to halt mining and export. Less responsible nations did not; this is a scandal that deserves wider attention.

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A decision that throws up even more questions.

The impact of Friday's appeal ruling concerning a 2001 media release by James Hardie on the parties to the case is clear. It is a stunning win for seven former directors and an enormous blow for the corporate regulator. However, the wider implications are not so straightforward. For a start, the judgment will not provide much comfort in boardrooms about the law's expectations of care and diligence. The NSW Court of Appeal overturned last year's Supreme Court decision because of holes in the factual case assembled by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission. The three appeal judges made no criticism of the regulator's interpretation of directors' duties.

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Overturning of penalties against ex-James Hardie directors.

Today's decision by the New South Wales Supreme Court to overturn bans against former directors of James Hardie is a slap in the face of the families of asbestos victims, say unions. ACTU Secretary Jeff Lawrence said it was an insult to the memories of the thousands of Australians killed by asbestos-related diseases that the seven former directors are now free to go back into business.

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Lethal Asbestos Found in Cars.

A RETIRED mechanic has become the first person to win compensation for deadly lung cancer caused by asbestos dust from car brakes. John Booth, 73, from Pottsville on the Far North Coast, was diagnosed with mesothelioma after being exposed to asbestos fibres from James Hardie brake pads and linings during his 30 year career.

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Epidemiology: Fear in the dust.

They became known as the cancer villages - tiny hamlets in Cappadocia, Turkey, that for generations have been haunted by an extremely rare lung condition. Mesothelioma, responsible for up to half of the deaths in these towns, is almost always associated with exposure to asbestos. But here, researchers found a different cause: a mineral called erionite, which is built into the very fabric of the villages. It is on the roads, in the fields and in the stone used to construct the houses. Now, decades of research in Turkey may help to save lives 9,500 kilometres away, in a rural corner of North Dakota. The Killdeer mountains in the western part of the state are rich in erionite, and they serve as the only nearby source of stone for surrounding Dunn County. When Ed Murphy, the state geologist, heard about the Turkish cancer villages five years ago, he grew concerned and launched an investigation that found erionite in gravel covering hundreds of kilometres of roads.

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NSW Welcomes Loan Agreement.

Premier Kristina Keneally today welcomed the Federal Government's decision to sign an agreement to ensure security of payments to asbestos victims and their families. The agreement between the Federal and State Governments will ensure victims will continue to receive payments from the Asbestos Injuries Compensation Fund (AICF). The AICF was set up in 2005 after a landmark agreement negotiated with James Hardie by the NSW Government, Bernie Banton and the Australian Council of Trade Unions. The agreement, announced today by Prime Minister Julia Gillard, will see the Commonwealth provide a loan of up to $160 million to the NSW Government.

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ADRI Media Release.

AUSTRALIA'S NEW ASBESTOS DISEASES RESEARCH INSTITUTE
ONE STEP CLOSER TO TREATING PATIENTS WITH MESOTHELIOMA

New research conducted by the Asbestos Diseases Research Institute (ADRI) (the world's first stand-alone research facility dedicated to asbestos-related diseases) has identified a new tumour marker for mesothelioma - a breakthrough toward better treatment for patients with a disease that has an average survival time of only 6-18 months after diagnosis.

With malignant cancers characterised by uncontrolled growth of tumour cells, the rate of growth of tumour cells can differ significantly from one patient to another making effective treatment of the cancer difficult. However, recent oncological research conducted at the ADRI has shown certain markers in blood or tumour tissue can reflect the aggressiveness of the disease.

Professor Nico van Zandwijk, Director of the ADRI said, "This is a significant research outcome in that some of these markers have become very important in the treatment of malignant diseases such as asbestosrelated mesothelioma by assisting clinicians in guiding specific treatment for each person diagnosed with the disease".

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