May 10, 2006: Owens Corning Reaches $5.2 Billion Asbestos Settlement

Owens Corning, a producer of fiberglass insulation products, made a settlement agreement where it would pay $5.2 billion to asbestos victims and their families, as the company’s effort to escape bankruptcy.

August 4, 2005: $4.5 Million Award in Louisiana Asbestos Case

A Louisiana jury gave $4.5 million to the family of a dead paper mill worker who died of lung cancer after being exposed to asbestos due to his job. An important aspect of the case is the jury discovered the mill owner responsible for harm to the worker that might have progressed before 1952, although the State of Louisiana did not recognize asbestos as an occupational hazard until that year.

March 18, 2004: Asbestos Company Cannot Sue Tobacco Companies

Owens Corning, a company that was facing multiple lawsuits over asbestos exposure of workers was ruled by the Mississippi Supreme Court that it could not sue tobacco companies for contributing to the poor health of the workers impaired by the asbestos. Owens Corning was trying to recover billions of dollars it paid to the injured workers, however, the court resolved that the evidence did not indicate that the tobacco companies were directly liable for the injury of the workers.

March 4, 2004: Study Finds 10,000 Asbestos-Related Deaths Each Year

The Environmental Working Group, a non-profit organization, published a study made that revealed that there were 10,000 Americans who die every year from asbestos-related diseases. The results of the study also claimed that while the number of yearly deaths due to asbestos increased consistently since the late 1970s, the highest point of asbestos-related diseases which included mesothelioma and asbestosis might not be attained in the US for many centuries yet.

February 5, 2004: FDA Approves First Mesothelioma Drug

The US Food and Drug Administration or US-FDA granted the approval of the first medicine to treat mesothelioma, an unusual kind of cancer-related to one’s long-term exposure to asbestos. The new drug called Alimta or pemetrexed disodium is applied with cisplatin and will be circulated by Eli Lilly and Company.