If you are a professional painter and you have been diagnosed with bladder cancer, you may be surprised to learn that the chemicals contained in the paint used could be the cause of your condition. If you have worked in a profession that caused you to be in frequent contact with paint or paint fumes, or if you worked as a decorator, artist, glazier, plasterer, or wall paper hanger, you could be at a higher risk for developing bladder cancer.
Investigators are looking into the link between exposure to paint fumes and bladder cancer. Many personal injury attorneys are taking cases where professional painters and others who are regularly exposed to fumes have developed bladder cancer, and often offer free case reviews. If you or someone you know you may be able to seek monetary compensation for your condition. You should consult with a personal injury attorney as soon as possible to discuss the details of your case and learn your options.
The most commonly reported symptoms of bladder cancer include the following:
- Blood clots or blood seen in the urine, a condition known as hematuria. This happens in eighty to ninety percent of all cases of bladder cancer, and is considered to be the most common symptom. Hematuria is not typically painful.
- Dysuria, which is pain or discomfort while urinating.
- Having to urinate small amounts often.
- Frequent or recurrent urinary tract infections (UTIs).
When bladder cancer advances, other symptoms may be present such as:
- Swelling of the lower legs.
- Pain in the lower back in the area near the kidneys, which is referred to as flank pain.
- Pelvic growths in the area of the bladder.
If the bladder cancer has spread throughout the body, these symptoms may occur:
- Pain in the bones, or pain in the pelvic, anal, or rectal areas.
- Anemia.
- Weight loss.
Painters are often subjected to exposure to a variety of chemicals, such as solvents that are petroleum based. These solvents include alcohols, xylene, esters, toluene, glycol ethers, and ketones. Paint strippers often contain chlorinated hydrocarbons as well. For many years, benzene was used as a paint solvent, but today is only found in low quantities in some solvents that are petroleum based. Chromium, titanium dioxide, and iron compound are frequently used as pigmentation for paint, with lead being its predecessor. Paint filler, taping compounds, and spackle can contain asbestos, and painters can also suffer harm from being exposed to silica during the preparation of surfaces in painting metal and on construction projects.
The journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine published as study in 2010 that found that professional painters, as well as those frequently exposed to paint fumes, were at a higher risk of developing bladder cancer when compared to those who do not. While a key risk factor for bladder cancer is also smoking, higher than normal numbers of the disease have been seen in workers in certain occupations such as painting. Painters are exposed to many of the same chemicals that are contained in cigarette smoke, such as aromatic amines.
Researchers who conducted the study looked at roughly three thousands cases of bladder cancer in professional painters. These patients included painters, wall paper hangers, artists, plasterers, decorators, and glaziers. After considering smoking behavior, the study found painters to be thirty percent more likely to suffer bladder cancer compared to the population in general. This suggested that painting is considered to be an independent risk factor for bladder cancer.
What's more is that there was evidence that suggested female painters are more likely to contract the disease compared to male painters; however there were only four studies that looked at women independently. Studies also found a link between the length of time a person worked as a painted and the risk for developing bladder cancer. People who worked for more than ten years as painter were more likely to develop the disease compared to those working in the field for less than ten years.
The authors of the study were not able to determine which precise reasons accounted for the elevated risk. There are many factors involved in the matter including different types of paints used, the length of time working in the field, and how long people were exposed.
With an annual death toll of one hundred and thirty thousand people, and more than three hundred and thirty thousand new cases diagnosed yearly, bladder cancer is the ninth most common type of cancer diagnosed globally. (statistics courtesy of the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC)) The cause of this disease is not always known, but is seen more often in people who smoke, compared to people who do not.
This type of cancer is usually seen in people who are older, with ninety percent of cases appearing after the age of fifty five. Men are almost three times more likely to develop this disease compared to women. The risk level for men developing bladder cancer at some point in his lifetime is about one in twenty six, while a woman has a one in eighty four chance. Bladder cancer is the fourth most common type of cancer noted in men.
If you or someone you know worked as a professional painter or associated occupation, were exposed to paint fumes on a regular basis, and has been diagnosed with bladder cancer, you need to know that you do have legal options and you should consult with a personal injury attorney as soon as possible to discuss those options. These legal professionals can help you to determine all parties that can be held accountable and can help you to recover damages for past, present, and future medical expenses, loss of income, loss of quality of life, and pain and suffering. Since most personal injury attorneys work on a contingency basis, you do not have to worry about how to fund your claim in advance, and often pay nothing until the time your case settles.
If you are in need of a personal injury attorney please visit http://www.feldmanshepherd.com/
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