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Why You Should Care About Mesothelioma Awareness Day

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I was recently approached by Cameron Von St. James, a fellow blogger and an advocate for mesothelioma. Mesothelioma is a deadly, but preventable cancer that almost took his wife Heather shortly after she gave birth to their daughter. After learning more about mesothelioma, I enthusiastically agreed to help Cameron spread the word about the disease and chose September 26th to do it since it is Mesothelioma Awareness Day.

Meso-Awareness-Day

What Is Mesothelioma?

As I already mentioned, mesothelioma is form of cancer that is deadly but preventable. It is caused by exposure to airborne asbestos fibers. As you probably already know, asbestos is used in many construction and consumer products. Despite the widespread knowledge that asbestos has been proven to cause cancer, it is not globally banned and can be found in older buildings and homes.

Cameron’s wife, Heather, was diagnosed 9 years ago with malignant pleural mesothelioma. Apparently, she was unknowingly exposed to asbestos as a child when she wore her father’s work jacket to do outside chores. Although her doctor predicted that she would only live another 15 months, she underwent a highly invasive surgery that involved the removal of her left lung and she is now a survivor! Now Heather and Cameron work together to spread awareness to help prevent others from needlessly suffering from this disease.

Family shot

Approximately 3,000 individuals are diagnosed with mesothelioma each year and on average, they are given only 10 months to live.

How Can You Help?

You might be wondering what can you do to help. It’s easy! You can help spread the word via your social status. Visit the Dying to be Heard website and share the pre-written message via Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest.

You can also educate yourself and help educate others. Here are some important facts about asbestos:

  • It is still not banned in the United States or Canada. Millions of pounds of asbestos are used every year here. Products that are currently made with asbestos include –
    • Brake pads
    • Automobile clutches
    • Roofing materials
    • Vinyl tile
    • Cement piping
    • Corrugated sheeting
    • Home insulation
    • Some potting soils
  • Military veterans and construction workers have the greatest risk of developing mesothelioma since asbestos is extensively used in the military and in many construction materials.
  • There is a long latency between exposure and diagnosis of mesolthelioma (10-50 years).

 

Mesothelioma-Awareness-Day

Please take a few seconds to help spread the word about mesothelioma. It won’t take long and it might just help save a life!

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