Newsletter
Issue 1
Rohm and Haas
Aaron Freiwald is handling several cases against chemicals giant Rohm and Haas all arising out of an apparently increased incidence of brain cancers among workers at the company’s Spring House, Pennsylvania research facility. Associate Patricia Giordano is assisting Mr. Freiwald with this multi-faceted litigation.
The firm represents two families of two research chemists who contracted glioblastoma multiforme, a rare and deadly cancer. Barry Lange, a researcher for Rohm & Haas for more than 20 years, was diagnosed with brain cancer in 2001 and died two years later. The same year Dr. Lange died, his longtime Spring House colleague Charles Hsu was diagnosed with the same rare cancer. Dr. Lange and Dr. Hsu had worked in the same hallway at Spring House, along with several other researchers who had died earlier of the very same cancer.
All in all, the company has acknowledged as many as 15 cases of brain cancer among their Spring House staff, including 12 cases of the more deadly, malignant brain cancer. The individual claims brought on behalf of the Lange and Hsu families claim that Rohm & Haas committed fraud by concealing evidence of the rising number of brain cancer cases at the facility. The company has been conducting in-house epidemiological studies to identify further data about the possible causes of the brain cancer as well as the actual number of brain cancer cases. The company’s first study, which was conducted from June 2002 through January 2004, was inconclusive, finding no single chemical or agent that could be linked statistically with the brain cancer cases. A second in-house study is pending.
Mr. Freiwald and Ms. Giordano also filed a class action on behalf of all current and former Spring House employees. This action seeks medical monitoring costs so that Spring House employees can be screened to determine whether there may be other cases of brain cancer.
Anyone with information about the Spring House cancers or Rohm and Haas should feel free to contact Aaron (ajf@layserfreiwald.com) or Trish (pmg@layserfreiwald.com). For further information about the Rohm and Haas litigation click here.