Veterans with Mesothelioma: what the problem is, and what we can do

I drank swamp water with iodine and grape flavored powder, watched the stars come out as we were waist-deep in muddy water, dreamed about having a pair of clean, dry socks—almost as important as clean water when you're on a march. I saw a lot of men die, and I don't particularly want to talk about that. 

I want to talk about what my time in the Marines is doing to me now. Men who worked with asbestos all the time, the guys who fixed the ships, they get the asbestosis. I only was exposed to asbestos once in a while. But that's all it takes to give you mesothelioma, what I have now. I risked my life for this country, I didn't risk it so they could give me cancer forty years later.

It only takes one bullet to kill a man, and it only takes a little bit of asbestos to kill a man (over a long period of time). But the killing takes its time. Everyone who enlists or was drafted for service knows the stakes—or they think they do. They tell you you will risk your life for everyone's freedom and safety, but they don't tell you that risk goes on long after the risk from enemy fire is gone.

You didn't have to be on the front lines for the military to put your life on the line

Whether you were in the line of fire, or fixed ships or planes, you were part of America's first line of defense, and have earned the respect that comes with being a veteran. Asbestos exposure may have been part of your military service, but you were not told about the often lethal effects of asbestos, if you were even told about your exposure to asbestos at all.

The fact that all branches of the military are top-down operations means that the people at the top can get away with a lot, because it is against military culture to openly question orders. Imagine asking a drill sergeant why he wants you to run five miles in the rain, or giving him your opinion on what that would do to your health. There was no room to ask questions about anything, including asbestos.

But you are a veteran now, and your health has been harmed by exposure to asbestos. You have a right to ask questions. Why were you exposed to asbestos? How were you exposed to asbestos? What can you do about, legally and medically?

Short term exposure, long term problems

Asbestos exposure usually takes twenty to forty years to turn into an asbestos-related disease. If you were exposed to asbestos constantly—if you were in construction, or worked at a shipyard, or in a factory that used asbestos products—you were at risk for asbestosis, as well as mesothelioma.

If your exposure to asbestos was short, you probably aren't at risk for asbestosis (asbestosis happens after a lot of asbestos has been inhaled, over a long period of time, and it hardens the lungs), but you are at risk for mesothelioma. 

Your medical options are determined by what stage the cancer is at when the doctors diagnosed it. Your legal options are also related to your diagnosis—the sooner you seek help after your diagnosis, the more your lawyer will be able to do for you.