myeloma and job related causes

Hi,

It is not known what sparks off myeloma, but there are links to certain chemicals, like weedkillers and petroleum. It certainly sounds like much more than a coincidence that 6 people working together in the same place should all discover they have myeloma. I know that people who can prove that their work environment has led to a disease can claim compensation if they can prove their case.

I think they should all get in touch with each other and see if they can do anything. Perhaps posting a survey or questionaire on every myeloma and cancer forum may be a good place to gather names addresses and contact details of people who have been affected by Myeloma through work in the mines, if not for compensation for support and to see if it is more than a coincidence.

Its great to hear he's in remission, long may it continue

My father worked on tanks in the army since 1964, in march this year he was diagnosed with myeloma. when asked what he used to do it appears it came from the 'dirty'fuel used on tanks or as explained above from petroleum.

All his mates he served with have all died of cancer. He must be a lucky one. He is fighting it and winning!! Soldier through and through.

It does make you wonder if there is someone that should be notified about this? I live in an army town where i see young lads in the same black overalls he once wore, my heart fills with sadness thinking one day they may end up the same as my dad without knowing.

As far as compensation goes, i gave him the forms to apply for disabled war compensation but he doesnt want it. He isnt ready to accept defeat yet and wants as normal a life as the next man.

I'm going to look into this.. who else has developed cancer and is the job linked??

karen x

- and inside us. I used to live in an attractive village which I left to go to Uni. I went back recently and discovered that an extraordinary number of women had contracted or died from cancer. We're now calling it "Village of the Damned". I do know that farmers were not averse to tipping the residue of their agricultural pesticides and herbicides into the local water-courses, and of course we all walked through these fields and lived in close proximity to them. Sadly chemicals that were greeted as wondrous problem-solvers - whether sheep-dip or insecticide - have all too often been revealed to have nightmarish long-term effects.
I'm very sorry to hear about your father with the results of oil/petrol in contact with the skin. I suspect that these problems are often already known about but The Powers That Be try to keep the lid not on the chemicals but on the news of the effects so that they don't have to pay compensation or change their procedure. Lots of love and thank you for this thought-provoking posting. xxx Penny