For railroad workers, retirees or surviving family members to recover compensation for work-related cancer, they must be able to show that their occupational exposures caused or contributed to their disease. This can be difficult, particularly if the worker has passed away, and the assistance of an experienced railroad cancer lawyer with knowledge of the various railroad crafts can be crucial.
General Causation
The first question that must be determined is what substance(s) the worker was exposed to. Typical exposures include asbestos, diesel fumes or diesel exhaust, solvents, benzene and silica/ballast dust, among other exposures.
Frequency, Intensity and Duration of Exposure
The second part of evaluating a claim for railroad cancer is determining:
- How often the worker did the job that exposed them to the hazardous substance(s)?
- Daily?
- Multiple times each day?
- Weekly or monthly?
- How long did the exposure last each time?
- Did the exposure(s) last an entire shift?
- Were the exposures on and off throughout the shift?
- How significant was the exposure? Was there a lot of the material in the air?
- How many years did the worker do the job that had the exposures?
- Did the worker have any long furloughs where they were not exposed to the substances for any lengthy period of time?
Contribution of Non-occupational Exposures
The next part of an evaluation is determining if there are non-railroad causes of the specific type of cancer that the person has. The Federal Employers Liability Act (FELA) allows workers to recover for injuries due in whole or in part to the railroad’s negligence. This means that there are some occasions when a worker may have non-railroad risk factors for cancer, but is still able to recover compensation for some, but not all, of their damages. This can be something like smoking cigarettes, or exposures to substances while serving in the military or working a non-railroad job.
Expert Opinions
After evaluating all of these factors, an expert may be necessary to provide an opinion that the amount of the exposure was sufficient to cause the worker’s cancer. This can be from a doctor hired by the lawyers, or from the worker’s own treating physician. Often, a treating doctor’s opinion about causation can be very important to the evaluation of the claim.
Free, Confidential Initial Consultation
If you would like to discuss your exposures and diagnosis with an experienced railroad cancer lawyer, contact us today.
