Benzene Claim Center

Acute Myelogenous Leukemia is a fast moving, aggressive cancer that develops in the bone marrow.  It goes by several names, including Acute Myeloid Leukemia, Acute Myelocytic Leukemia, Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia and Acute Nonlymphocytic Leukemia.  Often medical personnel simply shorten the name to the acronym AML.

Benzene is one chemical that has been definitively tied to AML.  Benzene is a known carcinogen, under restricted use but still utilized in the manufacture of rubber, solvents, detergent, paint and varnish production, and various functions in oil refineries and petrochemical plants.  Overexposure to radiation can also cause the development of
AML.

AML Development and Symptoms

AML is a malignancy that attacks the bone marrow.  Specifically it causes the runaway production of malformed white blood cells, which in turn restricts the growth of red blood cells.  People who have been exposed to benzene on the job and begin to suffer fatigue, shortness of breath or begin to bruise and bleed easily may be developing AML.

Leukemic white blood cells cannot provide the normal function of white blood cells, which includes fighting off infection. Recurrent infections are another early symptom of AML, as are bone and joint pain, fever and spotting on the skin due to bleeding.  Many of these symptoms are misdiagnosed initially as influenza or a similar common disease.

AML Treatment

There are several types of AML, differentiated by the stage of cell development at which the white blood cells become leukemic.  These differences usually dictate the type of chemotherapy that is utilized.  As with all cancers, the earlier that leukemia is discovered the better the prognosis will be.  However because of AML’s aggressive and fast-moving nature, two thirds or more of all cases cannot be successfully treated – meaning put into remission for a number of years.

Recourse for Exposure to AML Related Substances

While there is some evidence of genetic predisposition for Acute Myelogenous Leukemia, it is generally considered a form of cancer caused by workplace exposure to carcinogens such as benzene. If you or a family member has been diagnosed with AML, you may have a case for compensation.  Contact a member of our legal team today; you will receive at no charge an in-depth review of your legal options based on your medical and employment history.

A lawsuit filed this weekend alleges that hundreds of thousands of Marine Corps veterans and their families drank toxic water at Camp Lejeune, and the government knew it.

Jones v. United States of America is the first in a slew of lawsuits that attorneys plan on filing at the Federal Courthouse in Raleigh.

The suit says the government knew for at least five years that chemicals such as tetrachloroethylene, trichloroethylene, dicloroethylene, vinyl chloride and benzene contaminated the water supply in high doses, but let the wells stay open.

Lawyers say the toxic water led to cancer and other health problems.

“These people are waiting for answers. They want to know why, for the first time in five generations, does everybody in their family have cancer?” said Joseph Anderson. “They want to know why they have rare cancers.”

The suit contends that if the military had followed its own regulations that had been in place since the 1950s, the contamination would not have happened.

Original Article