Andy Witney of Oxford died in August 2010 after battling mesothelioma for five years. Andy’s widow, Karen Witney, considers her husband to have been a “human guinea pig” for new mesothelioma treatments.

After beginning a trial mesothelioma treatment regime Andy suffered excessive side effects, including inability to use his legs and uncontrollable diarrhea. He died twelve days later in Churchill Hospital.

Mesothelioma is caused by exposure to asbestos dust and fibers. If inhaled, asbestos fibers can begin a mutative development in abdominal cavity lining. Most often affecting lung lining, mesothelioma grows irregularly patterned tumors which take decades to fully develop. Signs and symptoms may not be noticed for twenty to fifty years after original asbestos exposure and mimic those of pneumonia and bronchitis.

Mesothelioma treatments include surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapies. Due to the short patient life expectancy following diagnosis, which averaged eighteen months, many patients choose palliative care rather than cancer direct treatments. Palliative care focuses on pain management and quality of life.

Karen Witney found her husband in the hospital on several occasions unattended, and left in unhygienic states. This added greatly to both her and her husband s anxiety. Karen describes the last week of Andy’s life as “an unimaginable nightmare.”

Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals Trust chief executive Sir Jonathan Michael, wrote a letter to Karen Witney in response to her and her husband’s experience at Churchill Hospital. In the letter Michael wrote: “We regret that we did not provide Mr. Witney with a high standard of care during the final days of his life and for the distress and suffering this caused you both.”

Richard Money-Kyrle, of Darbys Solicitors LLP, negligence attorneys, said in response to the ordeal, “Medical negligence can come in many forms – not just botched surgery or misdiagnosis of a serious illness or injury. In this case, it was substandard care for someone suffering terribly with the effects of these drugs. There is no cure for mesothelioma. Surgery and drugs can extend life expectancy and quality of life however the individual must never be forgotten in the quest for new and better treatment.”

It is estimated that close to ninety thousand people suffer with mesothelioma each year around the world. A fraction of those are in countries where adequate health facilities exist and an even smaller number can afford the treatments and care necessary for such a rare disease.

In 2005 University of Washington’s Occupational Health and Safety Office received a citation from Washington Department of Labor, regarding the presence of potentially dangerous materials throughout the school’s campus. In response, University of Washington agreed to label all such areas.

Denis Sapiro, manager of University of Washington’s Occupational Health and Safety Office, acknowledged that asbestos materials had been present throughout the school’s buildings since the beginning of asbestos use (sometime in the 1920s for most of the US).

Used for its durability and fire resistant qualities, asbestos is not a threat when contained in other materials such as ceiling tiles or floor tiles. However, if exposed, the fibers of asbestos become airborne and can be dangerous. Once inhaled, asbestos fibers can begin a cancerous development in the lung lining and lining of other abdominal cavities. This growth is known as rare cancer mesothelioma.

Mesothelioma takes twenty to fifty years to demonstrate symptoms, making it difficult to diagnose. Symptoms are the same as those of pneumonia or bronchitis, often postponing proper diagnosis even more. Life expectancy following diagnosis is short, averaging eighteen months. Mesothelioma treatments exist, but there is no known cure.

About three thousand Americans die of mesothelioma each year. An estimated fifteen to twenty thousand mesothelioma deaths are reported globally each year with close to twice that number thought to go unrecorded.  The World Health Organization classifies asbestos as a Type 1 carcinogen and expects the number of asbestos related deaths to quickly triple if asbestos use is not drastically minimized around the world.

University of Washington began their labeling effort just a few years ago. As promised, all areas, components or materials containing asbestos received a sticker reading “Asbestos Danger.” These stickers were applied throughout the campus, including over three hundred buildings.

During a school break, letters were sent home to students and their families to introduce them to the warning signs they would find on returning to the university. However, many students sere still surprised and concerned to find the stickers on campus.

University of Washington’s asbestos compliance analyst, Roy Smith, clarified that the areas noted with “Asbestos Danger” stickers are not current health threats, but that immediate reports should be made if damage was done to or noted in those areas. Smith stated that University of Washington’s Facility Services would respond immediately to any damage report on campus.

A UK woman has died of mesothelioma while in the midst of suing tax offices she believed caused her asbestos exposure. Helen Wickings, from Wallington, was 65. She allegedly was exposed to asbestos during her employment at Inland Revenue offices in Croydon and Epsom.

While in Croydon, Mrs. Wickings spent time in the dusty archives, which she believed included asbestos dust. At Epsom her job required her to read meters in a boiler room of exposed pipes, another location she thought had exposed her to asbestos.

Asbestos exposure is considered the sole cause of mesothelioma, a rare cancer affecting lining of the lungs and other abdominal cavities. If inhaled, asbestos fibers can begin a cancerous growth process developing into an irregular pattern of tumors. This process typically takes twenty to fifty years to demonstrate symptoms. Mesothelioma patients often have no idea they have cancer until decades later when signs begin to show.

Mesothelioma symptoms include coughing and wheezing. Diagnosis can be difficult as these symptoms are often mistaken for pneumonia or bronchitis. There are several mesothelioma treatments available. Most common is a combination of surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Due to the short life expectancy following diagnosis, many mesothelioma patients are choosing palliative care to manage the pain and focus on quality of life. Although great research and testing initiatives are in process around the world, there is no known mesothelioma cure at this time.

Mrs. Wickings was active prior to the last few months of her life. She quickly went from swimming for exercise to struggling to walk. She said of her illness, “I thought it might be bronchitis or pneumonia at first, it just started as a bad cough.”

Her sister, Janet Martin, noticed the extreme change in her health. She said, “It was not until after Christmas that she began to go downhill very rapidly. She was struggling at Christmas but got through it and was able to spend it with her family.” Martin said of her sister: “She was a wonderful woman, she was always taking the initiative. She was very active and loved growing vegetables in her allotment.”

Mrs. Wickings recognized the need to educate others on the potential danger of asbestos exposure and the difficulties associated with proper mesothelioma diagnosis. “This needs publicity, because other people need to realise they might have been in danger,” she said.

Mrs. Wickings’s case against the Inland Revenue offices was postponed while her solicitors searched for additional evidence. Mrs. Wickings had hoped the compensation from the case could provide for her disabled husband, Ernie, after she was gone.