Members of the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers (IBB) carry one of the highest documented occupational asbestos-disease burdens of any building trade. Federal occupational-health research beginning with Dr. Irving Selikoff’s Mount Sinai cohort studies in the 1960s and 1970s — and extended by follow-up studies of the pressure-vessel trades through the 1980s and 1990s — documented mesothelioma incidence rates among career boilermakers among the highest of any trade in the United States, driven by lifetime exposure to asbestos-refractory brick, asbestos-refractory castable, asbestos gasket and packing materials, and asbestos welding pads and burn-hood curtains during pressure-vessel construction, relining, and repair.
Elevated rates of asbestos lung cancer, asbestosis, and pleural disease have been documented across the same cohort. Plaintiffs alleged in publicly filed U.S. asbestos personal-injury and wrongful-death litigation that daily field-erection, refractory tear-out, gasket scraping, and confined-space vessel-entry work produced the airborne-fiber concentrations underlying these disease rates.
Mesothelioma
A rare cancer of the mesothelial lining of the lungs (pleural mesothelioma), abdomen (peritoneal), or heart (pericardial). Latency is typically 20 to 50 years from initial asbestos exposure. IBB boilermakers who worked the asbestos era — particularly members who did refractory tear-out and rebrick inside utility, refinery, or pulp-mill boilers during outages — have historically had mesothelioma incidence rates at extreme multiples of the general-population baseline. Selikoff-cohort follow-up studies place boilermakers among the highest-risk industrial trades for mesothelioma in the country.
Asbestos lung cancer
Lung cancer caused or contributed to by asbestos exposure. The risk is multiplied by smoking — a synergistic effect that compounds beyond the additive risk of either factor alone. For career boilermakers who were also smokers, published cohort studies document lung-cancer incidence at extreme multiples of the general population.
Asbestosis
A chronic, non-malignant scarring of the lung tissue caused by inhaled asbestos fibers. Asbestosis causes progressive shortness of breath, persistent cough, and reduced lung function. It is common among long-career boilermakers who worked refractory rebrick and interior vessel-entry work through the asbestos era. It does not improve with treatment, and it is a recognized basis for a claim under most asbestos trust funds and civil claims.
Pleural disease
Including pleural plaques, pleural thickening, and benign pleural effusion. Common in long-career boilermakers even without other asbestos disease. Eligibility to file a claim under trust funds varies — some trusts pay for pleural disease alone; others require demonstrated functional impairment.
Other recognized diseases
Asbestos has also been linked to laryngeal cancer, ovarian cancer, and certain gastrointestinal cancers, each recognized under various asbestos trust schedules and case-law authorities. Eligibility and proof requirements vary by claim type.
If you or a family member is a current or former IBB boilermaker with any asbestos-related diagnosis, an experienced asbestos attorney can evaluate which trusts and claims are applicable to your specific facts.
Free, confidential case evaluation: Speak with O’Brien Law Firm — (314) 237-3332