It was announced last Tuesday that ExxonMobil Corp. would be going to court in a billion-dollar lawsuit against them. The company reportedly chose its bottom line over the well-being and safety of the Maryland community and as a result, may have to pay a hefty price.

Faulty equipment from Exxon’s site allowed for a leak from a damaged fuel line in 2006 for more than a month. As a result, 25,000 gallons of contaminated wells, including deadly toxins like benzene, were emitted putting hundreds of locals at risk.

Exxon Under Fire for Benzene Exposure

“Exxon was on notice it had problems with the line leak detector … and they did nothing. It’s not like they didn’t have the economic wherewithal to do something,” Stephen L. Snyder Snyder told jurors in his opening statement in Baltimore County Circuit Court. “This was a corporation that knowingly or deliberately left in an unreliable piece of equipment.”

According to reports, an estimated 150 observers, many of them plaintiffs, packed the Jacksonville courthouse nearly an hour before the trail began. Snyder stands to represent them all and has supposedly asked all of them not to speak to reporters regarding the trial.

Company Accused of Breaking the Law

The documents which Snyder as presented to the jury thus far reportedly detail how Exxon knowingly went against the law and the good of the people, acting with negligence. As early as 1998, Exxon officials reportedly knew that the line leak detectors were outdated which could make for potential problems, though they failed to do anything.

Even though a majority of children living with leukemia and other fatal forms of cancers are typically treated successfully these days, 30 to 40 percent are suffering long-term damage. According to the Hawaii Children’s Cancer Foundation, children who have successful gone through cancer treatments often suffer neurocognitive problems.

Dr. Wendi Hirsch, the child psychologist at the Kapiolani Medical Center for Women & Children has done extensive research with colleagues at the hospital on the subject of leukemia and children. Hirsch says the impact of chemotherapy and radiation on the cognitive abilities of children can be harsher and take longer to get over in comparison to adults. However, she also says that this has only been realized in the past few years and therefore more research could bring about the fast development of stronger treatments.

“Unfortunately, the advance in chemotherapy agents is killing some of the good brain cells as well as those they’re trying to kill,” explains Dr. Hirsch.

Foundation to Help Fund Research

Dr. Hirsch is also working with a foundation that is bringing one of the nation’s most reputable researchers, Dr. Danny Armstrong, together in conjunction with the NFL Charities to help increase awareness of these types of problems.

Dr. Armstrong is the professor of pediatrics and psychology at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine and directs the Mailman Center for Child Development. He is also currently working with the national Cancer Institute’s Children’s Oncology Group on a study of neurocognitive outcomes in children receiving treatment for acute lymphocytic leukemia.

In addition to leading a discussion and hosting a dinner in honor of leukemia research this week, Armstrong will also be meeting with the Hawaii Medical Service Association. They will reportedly been discussing the need for early testing for children and the need for neurocognitive therapy for children who receive chemotherapy.

A recent study conducted by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) analyzed the effects of benzene exposure at Hanford in Washington as well as at other nuclear sites. Researchers reportedly found that nuclear defense site workers who are exposed to low levels of radiation have an increased risk of dying from leukemia later on in life.

The study took a detailed look at the doses of radiation that the average worker at a nuclear site might be exposed over a lifetime of work. According to the NIOSH previous studies have looked at the link between exposure and leukemia and found a relationship between the fatal cancer and high levels of radiation exposure. In the U.S., 71 out of 10,000 men are expected to die from leukemia. For workers exposed to three rem of radiation in their places of work, the risk of dying from leukemia increased to 77 men out of 10,000.

“We emphasize that if workers are exposed to three rem the risk is very low,” explains Mary Schubauer-Berigan, a NIOSH epidemiologist.

Details of Leukemia Research

Researchers looked at workers who are exposed to more than one rem of radiation. These exposed workers chances of dying from leukemia were then compared to workers exposed to less than one rem. The Department of Energy limits supposedly limits radiation exposure to 5 rem per year; however, during practice tests radiation exposure is controlled to less than 0.5 rem per year.

The study looked specifically at five federal sites: Hanford, Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, Portsmouth Naval Shipyard and the Savannah River Site in South Carolina.

Students throughout the Hudson Valley in the state of New York, helped raise a reported $5.8 million at the 14^th-annual Pasta for Pennies program. The annual program was put on by The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) and the amount raised this year to support leukemia research is said to have broken records.

More than 13,100 students in 17 local elementary, middle and high schools did their part to raise $37,094, which will go towards leukemia research. The money raised by these pro-active students will also help provide critical services to cancer patients and the families of those living and suffering from leukemia. During a three-week time period, students filled collection jars with pocket change, with the classroom who was able to raise the most eligible for an Olive Garden pasta party.

“We are so proud of the enthusiasm and support these students passionately bring to the Olive Garden Pasta for Pennies program each year,” Dave Pickens, company president told reporters. “Their generous efforts continue to make a significant impact in their communities and a difference in the lives of families throughout the nation.”

Among the schools involved were:

• Minisink Valley Intermediate School in Middletown with $4,991.75
• Valley Central Middle School in Montgomery with $4,724.29
• Valley Central Middle School in Montgomery with $4,724

Loose Change for a Good Cause

Since its beginning, Olive Garden’s Pasta for Pennies has raised more than $42 million for LLS and has made a huge impact in fighting preleukemia, also known as MDS, and leukemia, both fatal forms of cancer. LLS is headquartered in White Plains, New York, and is considered to be the world’s largest voluntary health organization. The organization is committed to funding research for leukemia and since its development in 1949, has invested more than $600 million for leukemia research specifically.

“The money raised by our students, parents, teachers and school administrators throughOlive Garden’s Pasta for Pennies will help us continue to make advances in the search for cures and provide hope and support to patients and their families,” explains Barbara Gallagher, campaign manager of the LLS Westchester/Hudson Valley Chapter. “We are inspired by the outpouring of compassion and commitment to our mission and thank all student participants and Olive Garden for another great campaign.”

Finding a Cure

Leukemia, along with Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin lymphoma, myeloma and myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are all fatal forms of cancer that originate within the bone marrow or, in some cases, the lymphatic tissues. The illnesses are considered to all be related due to the fact that they all involve the uncontrolled growth of blood cells. When the erratic production of blood cells interferes with the body’s production of healthy blood cells, health complications arise. Although a cure for leukemia and these other types of cancers has not yet been found, organizations like the LLS, with the help of doctors and researchers, are doing their part to contribute to leukemia research and rid the world of these life-threatening diseases.

If you or someone you know is living with leukemia or a related-illness, please contact us today to speak with one of our trustworthy and experienced attorney’s who will ensure that you and your loved ones are getting the legal support and guidance you deserve.

A London Telegraph article recently reported that scientists have found that regular exposure to a cat or dog can reduce the risk of developing non-Hodgkins Lymphoma ( NHL ).  NHL is a  cancer that affects the lymphatic system, the process by which infection-fighting white blood cells are carried thoughout the body.

Researchers who did the study believe that the presence of the dogs or cats helps boost the immune system which in turn offers more protection against the cancer.  In Britain the disease affects about 10,000 people each year, most commonly in those who have a weak immune system.

More than 4,000 patients were analyzed by scientists at Stanford University and the University of California.  About half those patients had non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.

The findings, published in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention, shows that those who owned animals were almost 30 per cent less likely to develop the cancer than those without pets.

The longer they had kept pets, the greater their protection against the disease appeared to be, according to the study.

The greatest occurrence of NHL is in adults, with those over 50 more at risk.  Symptoms can include a swelling of lymph nodes in the neck, armpit or groin, a fever, especially at night, and weight loss and tiredness.  From the lymph nodes the cancer cells can spread through the bloodstream to any other part of the body including the brain, bowel, stomach and bones.

According to recent reports, a lymphoma treatment was recently developed by Biogen Idec that is showing promise of being effective in those who are suffering from leukemia. The combination therapy has been tested in late-stage human clinical trials and researchers are hopeful that this could be the breakthrough they’ve been waiting for.

The treatment involves Rituxan, a drug that was first approved by the FDA in 1997, combined with two chemotherapy medications. Testing showed that this combination therapy was much more effective in patients than chemotherapy alone.

Causes of Leukemia

Leukemia is an illness that afflicts thousands of people yearly in America and is a cancer of the blood or bone marrow. This form of cancer is typically caused by an irregular production of blood cells in the body.

Although leukemia can inflict children at a young age whose red and white blood cells reproduce sporadically, the illness is commonly caused by exposure to benzene as well. Benzene is a toxic chemical that can be found in gasoline, certain rubbers, and dyes.

Rituxan Details

Rituxan was originally approved as a treatment for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma until it was realized that the medication could be useful as a treatment for lymphoma. The medication has also been approved to treat those living with rheumatoid arthritis.

Biogen Idec is based out of Cambridge, Massachusetts and is partnering with California-based Genetech to begin marketing the drug.

According to recent reports, Lyondell Chemical Company has been asked by Houston Mayor Bill White to participate in a public hearing regarding the accusations brought against them for emitting benzene. Benzene is a known carcinogen and the company, which is the city’s largest refinery, is being accused of emitting large amounts of the chemical into the air.

The TCEQ, the agency who monitors Texas’ air quality, brought about the allegations against Lyondell. A spokesman for the agency claims the refinery is one of the country’s largest dischargers of benzene. Lyondell reportedly has the highest emission of benzene per barrel of products, in comparison to other refineries across the country.

Not the First Time

This is not the first time allegations of benzene exposure have been brought again Lyondell. In 1997, high amount of benzene were being emitted from the refinery provoking Gov. George Bush’s Anti-Pollution Program. At this time the Galveston-Houston Association for Smog Prevention reported that Lyondell was responsible for emitting 8,069 tons of benzene into Houston’s air.

“If the company believes that it’s just fine to put tons and tons of benzene in the air… then we would like to hear what scientific evidence they have that benzene is good for you,” White told reporters.

The mayor is hoping the hearing will help establish a benchmark for benzene emission in the state of Texas, where there currently isn’t one. Currently, the only pollution guideline in Texas is for the air toxin discharge based on the known risk that it would lead to one additional cancer case per 100,000 population. However, if the hearing doesn’t go as anticipated, Lyondell could continue to operate for at least 10 more years.

Interesting question before a Wisconsin appeals court. In it’s decision the appeals court upheld an earlier lower court decision that allowed a man’s wife and daughter to inherit his estate even though they assisted him to commit suicide.

In what some legal analysts say is a precedent setting case in the nation, the court held that while state law prohibits anyone who “intentionally kills” another person from inheriting and benefiting from the death, Wisconsin’s District 4 Court of Appeals said that provision isn’t applicable to cases of assisted suicide.

Edward Schunk suffered from non-Hodgkins Lymphoma and had been hospitalized. His doctor allowed him a one-day pass to go home and see his dogs one last time. His wife and daughter took him home.

Later that day he was found dead from a gunshot wound - self inflicted. His entire estate, about half a million dollars, was left entirely to his wife and daughter with nothing being left to his other five children. They contested the will saying that his wife and daughter assisted in his death by providing the shotgun and therefore should not be entitled, under Wisconsin law, to inherit because it’s a felony to assist another to commit suicide. The law provides that anyone who “intentionally kills” another cannot inherit from that person.

The Court held that that provision of law is not applicable to assisted suicide. The key phrase for purposes of this appeal is “unlawful and intentional killing of the decedent”, the court held. “The objectors contend that this plainly includes assisting the decedent to commit suicide. We disagree and conclude the phrase plainly does not include this conduct……”unlawful” and “intentional” modify “killing” by limiting its meaning. If, as we have concluded, assisting another to commit suicide is not “killing” another, it does not become so because the conduct is unlawful and intentional.

The three judge panel was unanimous in the decision and concluded that Edward deprived himself of life by shooting himself with the shotgun.

Pro-lifers are upset because they think that this does not hold those who assist in suicide to be accountable and gives them financial motive to assist the suicide.

Some interesting Leukemia stories while reading some other leukemia stories on blogs

• NFL Coaching Legend, SF 49ers Bill Walsh Dies at 75 from Leukemia … - Diagnosed with leukemia in 2004, Walsh had been in failing health for several months, according to Stanford …. ScaredMonkeys.Com is powered by WordPress. …
• Brazil’s great stem-cell experiment - [Editor’s note: David Hamilton, a former Wall Street Journal reporter, has covered the biotech sector for years and we’re delighted to have him as a contributor on news and trends in biotech, health and science (we’ve already run a few …

Biopure Corporation in Cambridge Massachusetts announced that it has had discussions with the Food and Drug Administration about starting a new human trial for it’s Hemopure product, a product already approved to treat anemia in dogs. The product is already approved for human testing in Europe and South Africa and has been for sale commercially in South Africa since 2001.

Hemopure is an oxygen therapeutic which was developed from chemically stabilized bovine hemoglobin and designed to be used as a blood substitute either because of short blood supply or for patients who for some reason refuse transfusions with human blood components.

Hemopure has been tested on humans in the United States but there were some safety concerns so further human testing was not allowed. The FDA and Biopure reached an agreement to do further animal testing to study those concerns and determine if another human trial could be started. Biopure wants to do a study of the product with patients who have Acute Myelogenous Leukemia (AML).

“Currently, AML patients who do not accept blood transfusions are unable to undergo potentially life-saving induction chemotherapy because of the profound anemia the chemotherapy causes,” the company said in a press release.

Zafiris G. Zafirelis, Biopure chief executive and president, added in a statement, “By serving as an oxygen delivery bridge following chemotherapy-induced suppression of red blood cell count, use of Hemopure, as part of a bloodless treatment regimen, may potentially reduce mortality in these patients, who currently have no hope.”

The U.S. Naval Medical Research Center has received congressional funding - four million dollars, FY 2006, 22.5 million dollars so far - to continue research and development of Hemopure. Under its research agreement with Biopure, the Naval Medical Research Center (NMRC) has primary responsibility for designing, seeking Food and Drug Administration (FDA) acceptance of and conducting a proposed Phase 2/3 clinical trial of Hemopure in trauma patients with severe hemorrhagic shock in the out-of-hospital setting. Hemopure attributes would seem to make it an ideal medical component fot the military branches.

It is stable for 36 months (three years) at room temperature.

It does not require refrigeration, warming or reconstitution.

It is compatible with all blood types.

It does not require blood typing, testing or cross-matching.

It is ultra-purified through a patented pharmaceutical manufacturing process that has been demonstrated to remove or inactivate potential contaminants, including infectious agents.