Lorenzo Lamas on “Good Day LA” to Promote the “The Greatest Escape Motorcycle Ride” for Mesothelioma Research

Actor and lifelong motorcycle enthusiast Lorenzo Lamas appeared this morning on the Fox morning news show, “Good Day LA”, to promote The Greatest Escape Motorcycle Ride which will take place this Sunday, September 22 to raise money for mesothelioma research conducted by the Pacific Meso Center.

Lorenzo Lamas will be riding alongside other celebrities and dignitaries including Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca and stars from the 1980s hit series CHIPS, Larry Wilcox, Robert Pine and Paul Linke. Joining them will be riders from many Southern California motorcycle clubs including Eaglerider Motorcycles, Los Angeles Young Riders, The Society of Riders and Free Riders.

The Worthington & Caron law firm is pleased to serve as the title sponsor for the inaugural event. Partners Roger Worthington and John Caron will be riding along with many of their clients and clients’ families and friends whose lives have been affected by asbestos cancer.

Whether or not you are a rider, all are invited to come out and enjoy the beautiful scenic views of the Pacific Coast Highway, starting in Marina Del Rey and ending at Malibu’s Sycamore Cove State Beach where the fun will continue with a barbeque lunch, craft beer, live music, raffle prizes and a live auction.

Bidders will have a chance to win a ride in the soon to be retired Goodyear Blimp, a two-night stay and dinner at the haunted Glen Tavern hotel, a gourmet dinner package on the Napa Valley Wine Train, dinner for four at the exclusive chef’s table at Firenze Osteria, high-end motorcycle gear and much more!

Come out for the ride or join us for a fun day of music, food, and prizes at the beach!

• Registration begins at: 8:30 a.m.
• Ride begins at: 10:00 a.m.
• Lunch & Concert begins at: 12:00 p.m.

RIDE BEGINS AT: Bartels’ Harley-Davidson 4141 Lincoln Blvd. Marina Del Rey, California

RIDE ENDS AT: Sycamore Cove State Beach 9000 West Pacific Coast Hwy Malibu, California

Registration for single riders is $45 and $35 for passengers, which includes lunch, concert and a commemorative T-shirt, pin and bandana. Tickets for those who aren’t riding but attending the post-ride party and barbeque are $20. Children under 12 are free.

Proceeds from the event will fund the Pacific Meso Center’s ongoing research into cures for mesothelioma conducted at the Punch Worthington lab on the UCLA campus and the Pacific Meso Center’s own lab in West Los Angeles.

For more information, sponsorship opportunities and to register please visit http://thegreatestescape.org/Home.html or contact Clare Cameron, Executive Director at 310-478-4678, or via email: ccameron@phlbi.org, or Cherry Hepburn, Project Leader at 818-505-1104, or via email: cherry@putnam-smith.com

>>> Inspiration behind The Greatest Escape :  Riding Dad’s Road King from Marina Del Rey to Malibu—Memories of Dad Along for the Ride

Riding Dad’s Road King from Marina Del Rey to Malibu—Memories of Dad Along for the Ride

On Sunday, September 22, riders will gather at Bartels’ Harley Davidson in Marina Del Rey, California for The Greatest Escape Motorcycle Ride. The ride marks the 50th anniversary of The Great Escape movie starring The King of Cool, Steve McQueen, whose life was cut short by malignant peritoneal mesothelioma at the age of 50. Proceeds from the event will go to support mesothelioma research conducted by the Pacific Meso Center in Los Angeles. Our firm is proud to be the title sponsor of this first-ever event.

Chuck Jarvis, Sr.

For many, the event will be an opportunity to experience the sheer freedom and exhilaration that comes from riding a motorcycle along the southern California coastline on a perfect late-summer day. For others, the event will also be a time to recognize the freedom lost by the thousands of Americans that are diagnosed with mesothelioma every year.

One of the driving forces for the Greatest Escape Motorcycle Ride is Chuck Jarvis Jr., a Los Angeles police officer who lost his father to malignant pleural mesothelioma in May of 2012. Chuck’s father, Chuck Sr., was an avid Harley rider and Steve McQueen fan.

Chuck Sr. grew up as the youngest of five kids in close-knit rural community in Indiana. He started riding motorcycles when he was a kid and rode all over the countryside. His family taught him the importance of hard work and being a good neighbor. Chuck Sr. would go on to instill the same values to his own children. In his son Chuck Jr., he would also go on to instill his passion for riding big American V-Twin Harley Davidson motorcycles.

Chuck and Sonia

“My dad offered a helping hand to anyone who needed it. He mowed yards and checked in on elderly neighbors,” Chuck Jr. shares about his father. “If a kid in the neighborhood didn’t know how to ride a bike, he taught them, and when the family went camping he invited the whole neighborhood. It was just who he was.”

While Chuck, Sr. was serving his country in the Vietnam War, his new wife Sonia saved money from her job and bought Chuck a brand new Harley Easy Rider and surprised him with it when he came home. Sonia’s brother even taught her how to ride the bike by herself, so when Chuck got home she was a pro.

Over the years, Sonia and Chuck occasionally traded Chuck’s motorcycles for cars when a baby was on the way. They sold their prized Easy Rider when Sonia was pregnant with their daughter, but by the time she was three, Chuck and Sonia were riding again on a Honda with their daughter squeezed between them. They rode “three-up” with their daughter to Disneyland, she even had her own little helmet.

Chuck, Sr. and Chuck, Jr.

Chuck and Sonia had a number of bikes over the years but, Chuck’s pride and joy was his Harley Road King. They originally purchased the bike with plans of riding it all over the country, but when Chuck’s health began to fail those plans were postponed. The Road King is now Chuck Jr.’s pride and joy and he will be riding it on September 22, in memory of his father and to help raise money for the Pacific Meso Center.

“The Pacific Meso Center gave us a lot of hope before my dad passed away and a great effort to the end. My motivation is to give hope to those that are diagnosed now and the possibility of treatment to prolong life and ultimately to find a cure. My hope is to bring light to this serious problem and to discontinue the use of asbestos related products around the world.”

We invite you to come out and take part in this memorial ride to raise money for mesothelioma research and spread awareness of this rare and aggressive cancer.

The ride will take place on Sunday, September 22, 2013

• Registration begins at: 8:30 a.m.
• Ride begins at: 10:00 a.m.
• Lunch & Concert begins at: 12:00 p.m.

RIDE BEGINS AT: Bartels’ Harley-Davidson 4141 Lincoln Blvd. Marina Del Rey, California

RIDE ENDS AT: Sycamore Cove State Beach 9000 West Pacific Coast Hwy Malibu, California

Registration for single riders is $45 and $35 for passengers, which includes lunch, concert and a commemorative pin and bandana. Registration for children under 12 is free and if you just want to come out for lunch and a show, tickets are $20.

Proceeds from the ride along with the raffle and auction at the post-ride party will fund the Pacific Meso Center’s ongoing research into cures for mesothelioma being conducted at the Punch Worthington lab on the UCLA campus and the Pacific Meso Center’s own lab in West Los Angeles.

For more information, sponsorship opportunities and to register please visit http://thegreatestescape.org/Home.html or contact Clare Cameron, Executive Director at 310-478-4678, or via email: ccameron@phlbi.org, or Cherry Hepburn, Project Leader at 818-505-1104, or via email: cherry@putnam-smith.com

For more on Steve McQueen:

• Mesothelioma Does Not Respect Fame Or Fortune
• Worthington Honors Memory OfSteve McQueen, Donates Movie Money To Research
• A Candid Interview WithBarbara McQueen 26 Years After Mesothelioma Claimed The Life Of Husband AndHollywood Icon, Steve McQueen
• Benefit Concert Raises$250,000 For Mesothelioma Research

Team FAC Does it For Dad, Wins the Gold

Photo courtesy of Lasala Images

Racing a bike hard won’t cure cancer.  Racing a bike really hard and even winning won’t cure it either. So what’s the point? Why am I so proud and privileged to have won the gold medal with my friend and teammate Michael Johnson in the Masters National Championships tandem time trial last week in Prineville, Oregon?

I’ll tell you why.

Michael – MJ – and I have a bond. It’s not a bond we wanted, because it came about only through unspeakably sad and wrenching loss. MJ lost his father, John Johnson, in 2012.  I lost my father, David “Punch”Worthington, in 2006.  Both were taken from us well before their prime. These two strong and swarthy former U.S. Marines were taken by cancers caused by asbestos.

Like so many others who have lost a father or mother to asbestos cancer, MJ and I miss our Dads.  We remember them for the way they fought back, against the odds, to overcome their affliction with honor and dignity.  We remember how, despite the pain, and constipation, and bloating, and tumors, and emaciation, they soldiered on, never giving up, and never complaining.

“My God,” we silently screamed, “If we had only a fraction of their strength!”  MJ and I were impressed and awed by the examples set by our fathers.  MJ’s a former professional bike racer.  I have a life-long passion for cycling.  About a month ago we decided to compete at Nationals to in some small way honor the life and times – the good and the bad times – of John and Punch, respectively.

We hooked up on a bike built for two, aka, a "tandem."We hadn’t ever ridden a tandem together before. We dialed in the bike (seat height, handle bar position, etc.) literally an hour before the gun went off. Admittedly, we were scared. What if we flailed? What if our rhythm was off? What if we cracked, or crashed, or simply lacked the power?

Photo courtesy of Lasala Images

Fear can be a very strong motivator. MJ didn't’ want to let me down, and I didn't want to let him down.  And neither of us could stomach letting the spirit of our Dads down. We knew we had to give 110%. Neither MJ nor I are wispy crystal gazers but we wanted so badly to believe that by choosing with all our might to go “into the box” of pain we would somehow leave our bodies and connect on that mythic astral plane with our tough marine progenitors.

Our goal was to bond, to connect, to triumph, and more viscerally to smash the 25 mile course record of 51.25.  In short, our mission was to crush. We knew it would come down to the last few miles, when our legs were loaded up and the oxygen was scant and we were in the tunnel hurtling through the blackness fueled by glorious sacrificial suffering.

MJ set a wicked pace.  We went out hard and fast.  MJ said later he kept imagining his Dad, John, looking down with a smile. My thoughts went to the river, the Crooked River, which meandered along our race course through high canyon walls. Punch used to drift down this river in his big flat bottom canoe, fishing, camping, drinking Hamm’s and, as he said, connecting with his “spirit eagle.”

The last few miles, when we entered the tunnel, when the lights went dim and the brain slowed down but the legs kept robotically churning, MJ and I both realized this was a moment we would look back on, forever, whether happily or not.  We wanted “happily." Again, the fear kicked in, forcing us to leave nothing to chance, and blow it all out. MJ could barely breathe, I could barely breathe, but we each summoned the energy to shout into the wind with conviction “John Johnson!” and “Punch!”  This was indeed our moment and we wanted to share it with our Dads.

We crossed the line, wasted, but happy. We knew we left nothing on the course, and if that wasn't good enough to win, so be it.  I checked my Garmin computer. “Holy Smokes!” We had averaged 30.1 mph and recorded a time of 49.15, shattering the course record by over two minutes.  We later learned that we – “Team F.A.C” (F-- Asbestos Cancer] had beaten the second place team by four minutes.

No, we didn't beat mesothelioma, or lung cancer, or asbestosis.  We didn’t raise money for cancer cure research.  And we didn’t bring our Dads back.  But for those 49 minutes and 15 seconds we honored the memories of our Dads in a way we believe they would appreciate. We did it the way that they had taught us -- fight hard for what you believe, go for the gold and give something back.  MJ and I lost our Dads but from their loss we gained a brotherhood that will last forever.

RGW

9/11/13

New Immunotherapy Compound Anti-CD40 Slows Mesothelioma Tumor Growth After Recurrence

In the September 2013 issue of The Journal of Immunotherapy, researchers from the Western University of Australia published results of a study using a promising new immunotherapy compound and its effects on reoccurring mesothelioma tumors in lab mice. Immunotherapy is based on the body's natural defense system, which protects us against a variety of diseases.

Researchers tested the effects of anti-CD40, an antibody which increases the body’s production of tumor-fighting T-cells, on mesothelioma tumors in mice. Researchers first removed the mesothelioma tumor, then re-implanted mesothelioma cells to mimic reoccurrence of disease. At the occurrence of established regrowth, the anti-CD40 was administered to the tumors through the bloodstream, to the area surrounding the tumor, or directly to the tumor. The results showed slowed metastatic growth and inhibited local recurrence, in addition to improved survival from metastasis.

Mesothelioma has an especially high rate of recurrence even when treated with a multi-modality approach utilizing surgery, chemotherapy, and/or radiation. Immunotherapy offers great promise as an emerging option in cancer treatment, but it is still fairly new. Some types of immunotherapy have now become part of standard cancer treatment, while others remain experimental. An enormous amount of research remains to be done before the findings can be widely applied.

View the abstract here.

Related link: Primer on Immunotherapy - The New Frontier

Wall Street Journal Continues to Side with Asbestos Companies on Allegations of Asbestos Trust Fraud

The Wall Street Journal is continuing its practice of spreading asbestos trust fraud propaganda in its recent piece, “Exposing Asbestos Fraud.” The piece alleges that the judiciary is standing in the way of justice and that a judge ruling against a corporation while keeping the proceedings closed to the public is proof that there is fraud occurring in the asbestos trust system.

WSJ claims that North Carolina Federal Judge George Hodges is being “pushed” by plaintiffs’ attorneys to force Garlock Sealing Technologies to deposit an additional $1.3 billion into a bankruptcy trust for future asbestos claims, while Garlock feels that the $125 million trust they were forced to set up in 2010, after filing for bankruptcy in an attempt to secure immunity from lawsuits filed by persons injured by its asbestos products, should be more than enough to suffice.

WSJ asserts that plaintiffs’ attorneys filing claims with multiple bankruptcy trusts while pursuing others in court is a scam. WSJ, asbestos manufacturers and industry-backed government representatives like to call this practice “double-dipping.” Asbestos manufacturers feel that even if a plaintiff was exposed to asbestos through use of their products, if they were also exposed through use of another manufacturer’s product, they should only receive compensation for their deadly disease from one. This is not a scam, and there is nothing fraudulent about it, the majority of people who suffer from asbestos related disease were exposed to a wide variety of asbestos products from different manufacturers which ultimately caused their disease.

Lest we forget, the companies who manufactured and sold asbestos containing products up into the 1970s and 1980s knew for decades the harm caused by asbestos and kept it hidden, paying “scientists” and “industrial experts” to create false scientific articles, reports and evidence that asbestos was safe. Very much like what the Canadian government and asbestos industry were doing up into 2012, while Russia and other countries with thriving asbestos industries continue this practice today.

WSJ also criticizes Judge Hodges for closing his courtroom to the public during proceedings. WSJ and the industry would have you believe that keeping settlement information between different defendants confidential is deceitful. The truth is that settlements are the result of defendants deciding that the risk of going to trial before jury is too high, and it would be more beneficial for them to settle outside of court.

WSJ has previously expressed ardent  support of the deceitfully clever bill known as the Furthering Asbestos Claim Transparency Act, the FACT Act, which would require asbestos trusts to file quarterly reports disclosing personal settlement information on claimants in an attempt to limit the payouts of other defendants, who are also found liable for causing a victim’s exposure. WSJ reported on rampant fraud occurring in the trust system, the sponsors of the bill even quoted WSJ’s “investigative reporting” as evidence at the bill’s hearing, but as we discussed here, both parties failed to present any actual evidence of fraud.

WSJ continues to claim that fraud is occurring in the trust system but still offers no actual evidence. They state that Garlock was forced into bankruptcy because of fraudulent claims, again with no evidentiary support. If Garlock was forced into bankrupty, it was due to being tried and found guilty for causing harm to thousands of people in court systems all over the country. WSJ also alleges that Judge Hodges’ ruling against Garlock must be wrong simply because they are not privy to the transcripts. WSJ seems to believe that they should be able rule over these cases, and it’s a good thing they do not, as they have made it clear who they think the real victims are. 

Drugs Used to Lower Cholesterol May Prove To Be Viable Mesothelioma Treatment Option

Researchers at Chiba University in Japan recently examined the response of mesothelioma cells when treated with a combination of two statin drugs commonly used to lower cholesterol and paired with a form of vitamin E called gamma tocotrienol (y-T3). In some studies, statin drugs have been shown to reduce the risk of ovarian and liver cancer.

T3 administered alone had previously been shown to have a negative effect on mesothelioma cells, but when researchers combined with the drugs Zocor and Lipitor, cell growth was further inhibited and rate of mesothelioma cell death was increased. The researchers believe the higher rate of cell death is a result of the statin drugs activating a protein called caspase 3, which plays a vital role in cell death and only occurred in the presence of the statins.  

The combination has not yet been tested in humans, but research of this kind will prove to be revolutionary in the search for alternative and better treatment options for mesothelioma.

View the Abstract here.

The Chemical Safety Improvement Act of 2013 - Yet Another Obstacle to Banning Asbestos in the U.S

The Chemical Safety Improvement Act of 2013 (S. 1009) (CSIA) is a bill currently before congress. The legislation is designed to reform the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) of 1976. Many public health advocates who support TSCA reform do not support the CSIA as it is currently written, believing that the chemical industry is behind the draft legislation.

On July 31, 2013, Linda Reinstein, President of the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization, and a long-time leader in the effort to ban asbestos in the U.S., testified before the Senate Environmental and Public Works Committee (EPWC) at a hearing in support of TSCA reform. According to Ms. Reinstein, the CSIA as currently drafted would do more harm to public health and the environment than good. As detailed in the ADAO position paper, the current version of the CSIA would make it virtually impossible for the EPA to phase out or ban harmful substances already on the market. This, of course, would create yet another obstacle to banning asbestos. As Ms. Reinstein explained in her testimony, even though the World Health Organization, International Labor Organization, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and our Surgeon General all agree that there is no safe level of exposure to asbestos, usage of asbestos in some industries in the U.S. has increased.

The CSIA, as currently drafted, places the burden on the EPA to find that a substance is unsafe, rather than requiring chemical companies to prove that substances are safe. The CSIA also lacks deadlines which would require the EPA to quickly to assess and restrict the use of harmful substances. The bill would retain the unworkable standard of review in the TSCA which ultimately prevented EPA from being able to ban asbestos in 1989. Lastly, and probably the most far-reaching, is the language in the bill that would undercut a state’s ability to enforce existing laws or pass new ones against harmful substances.

A Los Angeles Times editorial states that TSCA has been, for all intents and purposes, out of commission since the EPA lost a lawsuit more than 20 years ago involving asbestos regulation. Shortly after the EPA issued a ban on asbestos in 1989, under authority of the TSCA, trade associations that represented U.S. and Canadian asbestos companies filed suit and a federal appeals court overturned the ban in 1991, ruling that the EPA failed to muster substantial evidence to support its rule to ban the substance.

In the 37 years that TSCA has been in effect, only 200 of the 85,000 industrial chemicals in use, not including pesticides, have been tested or regulated. The LA times piece goes onto explain that, under the bill, once the EPA designates a chemical as “high priority” for regulation, the chemical would then be under federal jurisdiction, and any state laws governing it would cease to have any authority. The EPA could then leave the chemical untested and unregulated for years. A clear gift to the chemical industry.

The website Beyond Pesticides published a letter from nine state Attorneys General to the EPWC expressing their, “deep concerns about the unduly broad preemption language proposed in CSIA.” Legislation needs to respect the rights of the states to protect their residents when the federal government fails to do so.

Science, not industry influence, must drive policy, writes John Replogle in a commentary published in the digital journal Roll Call. The onus must be on chemical manufacturers to demonstrate that the chemicals they use are safe, and the federal government must have the regulatory tools and financial resources to make this so.

Supporters of the Chemical Safety Improvement Act would have us believe it will enhance public safety and promote innovation, economic growth, and job creation by American manufacturers. As the bill is currently written, individual states would lose the power to protect their citizens and local environments from dangerous chemicals and hazardous materials, such as asbestos. Meaningful legislation needs to be passed that strengthens the protections for the people of this country by improving existing safeguards, not stripping them away.

Along with her testimony, Ms. Reinstein hand-delivered a petition with over 2,500 signatures to ban asbestos use in the United States. You can sign the petition here.