A study commissioned by the Centers for Disease Control and released several years ago examined the rates of mesothelioma diagnosis here in the United States. Their best estimate indicated that the rates of new diagnoses would drop by 2010. However, early indications from 2011 show that the mesothelioma diagnosis rate has actually increased far above that of last year.
The data comes from several insurance companies which have boosted the amount of funds they are expecting to pay out to mesothelioma victims. MetLife Inc. is the latest to display concrete data that shows the worst is not yet over.
According to Reuters, MetLife Inc. reported earlier this week that the company had received over 2,300 asbestos-related claims just during the first half of 2011. That number is actually 11 percent higher than the total number of claims received for the same time period last year.
This data flies in the face of what was commonly accepted as fact – that mesothelioma rates were on the decline. All previous indications showed that new cases of this deadly cancer were dropping and between 2003 and 2010 the number of new cases did so steadily.
However, this new data provided by MetLife mirrors research results collected by several other agencies, including American International Group Inc. and Hartford Financial Services, both which got into some legal trouble earlier this year due to revised expected payouts for mesothelioma patients.
Some estimates suggest that the total number of asbestos and mesothelioma related insurance claims in 2011 could rise as high as $75 billion.
Why so costly?
Though mesothelioma is completely preventable, the disease is aggressive, extremely difficult to treat and always fatal. Standard treatment for mesothelioma often requires radical surgery and extensive chemotherapy and radiation. The disease strikes roughly 3,000 people per year in the United States alone.
With insurance agencies feeling the financial pain caused by this disease, more and more patients may be left to seek alternatives methods of reimbursement such as mesothelioma lawsuits. Mesothelioma and asbestos law is a tricky area and often plaintiffs have to go after the supplier or manufacturer of the products which caused the asbestos exposure rather than their employers.
So while the CDC’s report had given hope that mesothelioma rates were in decline, this new data changes that outlook, giving strong reasons for continued research for a better treatment and cure.
Even after the rate of new diagnoses peaks, thousands of individuals will still be given what many see as a death sentence. Asbestos continues to lurk in older homes, public and industrial buildings, and even occurs naturally in rock formations. Mesothelioma will still haunt us for decades to come.
The best method to combat mesothelioma and other deadly asbestos diseases is to educate yourself and avoid all exposure to this known carcinogen.