ATTORNEYS FOR BENZENE LAWSUITS
ACUTE MYELOID LEUKEMIA (AML) CAN BE CAUSED BY OCCUPATIONAL EXPOSURE TO BENZENE AND OTHER VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUNDS (VOCs)
Are you a current or former auto mechanic, autobody mechanic, chemical industry worker, petroleum industry worker, printer, painter, mechanic, railroad worker, rubber worker, seaman, or did you or a loved one work in another occupation subject to long-term exposure to products containing benzene and other volatile organic compounds?
Have you or a loved one been diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL), chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), multiple myeloma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), or another blood-related cancer or disorder?
If so, you may be entitled to compensation for your pain and suffering, lost wages, medical expenses, and potentially punitive damages. In 2024, a jury returned a $725 million verdict in the case of Gill v. ExxonMobil, on behalf of a mechanic exposed to Mobil gasoline containing benzene. * * Results may vary depending on your particular facts and legal circumstances. No outcome can be predicted or guaranteed * *
Contact Mazie Slater Katz & Freeman, LLC today for a free consultation at (973) 228-9898.
Hazards of Occupational Benzene Exposure Are Known
Since at least the 1920s, medical experts have known about the causal association between benzene and leukemia. For example, by the 1930s, workers exposed to benzene in the printing industry were known to be at risk. In the 1940s, an American Petroleum Institute study cautioned that no “safe” level of benzene exposure exists. A 1943 report for Shell Development Company by a University of California researcher found that “any exposure at all is dangerous particularly if this exposure is prolonged.” Despite this, many companies continue to sell products containing benzene, and untold numbers of workers have been exposed to dangerous levels of benzene in the workplace.
The American Cancer Society (ACS) agrees that benzene is linked to AML, ALL, CLL, multiple myeloma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, MDS, and potentially other blood-related cancers and disorders. In 1974, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) first raised concerns about benzene causing cancer and blood damage to the haematopoietic system (the body’s system for creating blood) more generally. In 1979, IARC specifically classified benzene as Group 1, “carcinogenic to humans,” its highest carcinogenic classification. In 2018, IARC summarized its findings as follows:
In the current evaluation, the Working Group again confirmed the carcinogenicity of benzene based on sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity in humans, sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity in experimental animals, and strong mechanistic evidence. The Working Group’s evaluation of the accumulated evidence from human epidemiological studies focused on studies in which occupational or environmental exposure to benzene was specifically identified. The findings fully supported the previous conclusion that benzene causes acute non-lymphocytic leukaemia – including acute myeloid leukaemia – in adults, as well as the previous observations of limited evidence for chronic lymphocytic leukaemia, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and multiple myeloma. On the basis of new data available since the last review, the Working Group also found limited evidence that benzene causes chronic myeloid leukaemia and lung cancer, and acute myeloid leukaemia in children. The Working Group’s review of the large body of mechanistic studies took into account the key characteristics of carcinogens (Smith et al., 2016). The Working Group affirmed the strong evidence that benzene is genotoxic, and found that it also exhibits many other key characteristics of carcinogens, including in exposed humans. In particular, benzene is metabolically activated to electrophilic metabolites; induces oxidative stress and associated oxidative damage to DNA; is genotoxic; alters DNA repair or causes genomic instability; is immunosuppressive; alters cell proliferation, cell death, or nutrient supply; and modulates receptor-mediated effects.
The US National Toxicology Program (NTP)—an interagency program that includes the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)—has classified benzene as “known to be a human carcinogen.” The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) “has classified benzene as known human carcinogen for all routes of exposure.”
Benzene: What is it and how is it used?
Benzene is classified among the twenty chemicals used most in American industrial applications. At times, benzene has a sweet smell, and at others, it has no odor at all. In a liquid form at room temperature, benzene has a light-yellow color. In its gaseous form, benzene may appear like a colorless fog. Benzene is highly flammable.
Benzene is found naturally in crude oil. As a result, many refined petroleum products contain benzene, including gasoline, other fuels, solvents, paint and glue. In addition, benzene is widely used in the manufacture of many substances and products, such as plastics, rubbers, resins, lubricants, dyes, detergents, pesticides, and has even been reported to be found in consumer products, which are the subject of ongoing litigation.
Manufacturers of products containing benzene and other VOCs include but are not limited to ExxonMobil, BASF, Ashland, Texaco, Sunoco, Shell Oil, Chevron, 3M Company, Berryman Products, PPG Industries, CRC Industries, U.S. Steel, Safety-Kleen Systems, and B’Laster. Products containing benzene are sold by auto part stores, gas stations, and by others.
Benzene and VOC Lawsuits
Mazie Slater Katz & Freeman, LLC is investigating claims for people who have been exposed to benzene and other VOCs. Benzene is contained in fuels, solvents, paints, glue, and other products used by auto mechanics, auto repairmen, autobody mechanics, chemical and petroleum industry workers, printers, painters, mechanics, railroad workers, rubber workers, seamen, and others. In addition to the unreasonable dangers of their defective products, many of the manufacturers of these products failed to adequately warn that benzene is unreasonably dangerous, and can cause blood cancers and disorders, including AML, resulting in severe and permanent injuries, and death.
Who is Eligible to File a Benzene Lawsuit?
If you or a loved one worked in an occupation subject to long-term exposure to benzene or other VOCs, and has been diagnosed with AML, ALL, CLL, multiple myeloma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, MDS, or another blood-rated cancer or disorder, you may have a claim. Contact Mazie Slater Katz & Freeman LLC today at (973) 228-9898 for a free consultation.
