When John, a long-time railroad worker, was diagnosed with lung cancer, his world turned upside down. He had spent decades working around trains, rail yards, and railroad equipment—but he’d also smoked for many years.
Now, faced with this frightening diagnosis, he couldn’t help but wonder: Was it just the cigarettes? Or could it have been something else, like asbestos?
His instinct was to blame himself, but John’s story isn’t unusual. Many railroad workers who develop lung cancer or mesothelioma (lung cancer caused by asbestos exposure) think they can’t do anything about it because they are smokers—or were smokers in the past.
But that belief could be very wrong.
In some cases, railroad workers may still be able to hold their railroad employer liable for their cancer diagnosis, especially if the cancer was caused or partly caused by occupational exposure to asbestos—a toxic, carcinogenic substance widely used in the railroad industry for decades.
If you or a loved one is a former railroad employee facing a lung cancer diagnosis, it’s crucial that you know the facts and not rule out the possibility of a legal claim. Many of our past clients who suffered from cancer had no idea that they were exposed to hundreds if not thousands of invisible asbestos particles in the various insulating materials they worked around while employed by their railroad employer.
For example, most railroad conductors and engineers had no idea they were working around trace (invisible) amounts of asbestos in engines and various railroad yard offices. Railroads certainly did not advertise or notify the workers that asbestos-insulating materials were present in yard offices or even on locomotive diesel engines.
In fact, the nation’s railroads did not start removing asbestos insulation from diesel engines until they realized the lawsuits brought by former workers were costing them more than the cost of removing the insulation. In some cases, the insulating materials were not even in the engine cab itself.
We’ve learned from the cases we’ve handled that there were insulating pipes under the floors of locomotive cabs. When workers turned on the forced heating systems in locomotive cabs, some invisible asbestos fibers traveled through the air. Since each asbestos fiber is invisible to the naked eye, hundreds if not thousands of these fibers would often circulate in a locomotive engine cab whenever they were underway in winter conditions with the heater on.
In fact, the heater didn’t even have to be on for some asbestos to be invading the locomotive cabs.
Most railroad workers or their families do not know another important thing: federal regulations were violated when toxic asbestos fibers traveled inside the locomotive engines. Many cases have confirmed that any airborne asbestos in the locomotive engines itself could constitute a violation of a federal law called the Federal Locomotive Inspection Act.
At Shapiro, Washburn, & Sharp, we’re nationally known for representing railroad workers in injury claims and can help you determine if you may have a case. Call our FELA injury lawyers & railroad accident attorneys at 833-997-1774 for a free consultation.
Lung Cancer and the Railroad Industry
Railroad workers have long been at increased risk for lung cancer, particularly those who worked in mechanical shops, on train engines, or in areas where asbestos-containing materials were present.
Occupational exposure to inhalable carcinogens is a primary risk factor for cancer among railroad personnel, especially before 1982 when toxicity was less known. Repeated exposure to diesel exhaust alone was associated with a 20-50 percent increased chance of developing lung cancer.
Exposure to other toxins, such as asbestos, granite dust, cleaning solvents, creosote, lead paint, herbicides, and crystalline silica, can also increase the risk of lung cancer. Anyone who worked on railroads before the early 1980s is at high risk of developing mesothelioma caused by exposure to asbestos.
The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) also notes that asbestos exposure increases the risk of developing lung cancer and mesothelioma, a type of lung cancer that develops in the membrane lining the lungs and chest cavity.
Smoking Worsens Risk of Asbestos-Related Cancer
Before the 1980s, asbestos was frequently used in insulation, brake pads, gaskets, pipe coverings, and more. Railroad workers handled these items daily, usually without proper warnings or protective equipment.
Railroad workers who smoked increased their risk of lung cancer because of the toxic components of cigarette smoke. But that doesn’t necessarily let railroad companies off the hook.
That’s because smoking makes a person even more vulnerable to lung cancer from asbestos exposure.
Studies show that those who smoke and are exposed to asbestos experience a significantly compounded increased risk of lung cancer. In other words, asbestos exposure, when combined with cigarette smoking, increases the risk of the disease much more than either asbestos exposure or cigarette smoking alone.
Smoking, Asbestos, and The Railroad’s Responsibility
Attorney Rick Shapiro, a nationally recognized railroad injury lawyer with decades of experience, has handled numerous cases involving railroad workers who developed lung cancer. He understands the science behind these cases—and how railroad companies used it to their advantage.
“I’ve represented hundreds of railroad workers in the past,” Shapiro explains, “and more and more, it seems like railroad workers around the nation are coming up with cancers—lung cancers and other cancers. And they’re wondering whether it’s caused by asbestos or diesel exhaust exposure or other toxic chemicals in the workplace.”
But what if the railroad worker was a smoker? Shapiro explains, “In a setting of asbestos exposure, having been a cigarette smoker makes your likelihood of getting lung cancer exponentially higher, but the railroads themselves knew this and did not warn the railroad community.”
This isn’t speculation. As early as 1979, researchers reported on the combined effects of cigarette smoking and exposure to asbestos dust on lung cancer. Yet despite mounting evidence, rail employers failed to issue warnings or implement protective measures to keep their workers safe—not CSX, not Norfolk Southern, not Amtrak, either.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)—founded in 1971—has long held that employers have a duty to provide safe working environments, including protection from carcinogens like asbestos. Failing to do so is a form of negligence.
The Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA)—founded in 1908 to address the safety of railroad workers—allows railroad employees to recover damages for injuries caused by the negligence of their employer, co-workers, or even equipment manufacturers. This act often paves the way for railroad workers to obtain compensation for injury-related damages.
Why a Smoker May Still Have a Strong Claim
It’s understandable to think that because you smoked, you may have a harder time proving that exposure to asbestos or other toxins in the railroad industry caused your lung cancer.
This is why you need an experienced railroad injury attorney. We understand that being a smoker doesn’t negate a possible railroad cancer claim. The law will take your smoking into account, but it will also consider the employer’s responsibility to protect its workers from known dangers.
In railroad injury claims brought under the FELA, courts recognize “comparative negligence.” That means that even if you smoked, the employer may still be held responsible if their actions contributed in any way to the illness. This means that if a jury concludes that asbestos contributing to causing lung cancer, it doesn’t matter if they think cigarette smoking also contributed.
Having the right legal team on your side can make a big difference. The attorneys at Shapiro, Washburn, and Sharp have spent decades representing railroad workers and know how to develop compelling legal arguments—even for clients with a history of smoking.
How Can a FELA Injury Lawyer Help?
If you or a loved one is a former railroad worker who has developed lung cancer, don’t make assumptions about your rights.
Contact us at Shapiro, Washburn, & Sharp. Firm partner Richard N. Shapiro has twice served as Chair of the Railroad Law Section of the nation’s most prominent trial lawyers association and is the co-author of Railroad Health and Safety: A Litigator’s Guide, a legal treatise on railroad law.
We also offer two downloadable legal guides focused on railroad worker injury law:
What Railroad Claim Agents Won’t Tell You (But You Must Know)
Dos & Don’ts When Injured on the Job at a Railroad
Our team knows the railroad industry inside and out, and we’re passionate about holding companies accountable for not protecting their workers. For example, we represented a client who had worked as a brakeman/switchman for more than 40 years for CSX Transportation and one of the freight railroads it acquired. He was also a smoker.
Shortly after retiring, he was diagnosed with lung cancer, which he and his doctors attributed to decades of on-the-job exposure to asbestos, diesel fumes, radiation, and also to cigarettes.
The railroad worker sadly died following a 5-year battle with cancer, and his widow hired our team. The jury returned a verdict of $8.6 million for the deceased worker’s estate and family. CSX appealed, and the case went to the state supreme court, where the justices affirmed the finding that CSX was legally at fault but also ordered a new trial to reconsider how much the railroad company owed in the damages compensation.
In filings ahead of the second trial, the railroad worker’s widow and estate requested $15 million. The railroad eventually settled all claims for a confidential amount the railroad worker’s widow found acceptable.