Sterigenics & Ethylene Oxide Contamination Lawyers

Are you looking for an experienced environmental attorney for your Willowbrook, IL cancer case? The Collins Law Firm is representing dozens of clients with breast cancer, multiple myeloma, Non-Hodgkins lymphoma, and other cancers linked to ethylene oxide exposure. Our client believe their cancers were caused by years of exposure to ethylene oxide emissions coming from the Sterigenics sterilization facility in their community. We have filed toxic tort lawsuits for these client who lived or worked within 3 miles of the Sterigenics plant in Willowbrook. The first case is being tried in Cook County right now; hundreds more await their day in court.

We are a trusted, environmental personal injury law firm, and we have been representing clients diagnosed with cancer after being exposed to toxic chemicals for years. We are unique among personal injury firms because we have decades of experience dealing with the complex science that is a part of these “toxic tort” cancer cases. These lawsuits are not typical personal injury cases, like the car crashes or slip and falls, which most personal injury firms handle. They are an environmental lawsuit and a personal injury case blended into one complex case and require the right kind of scientific experts and legal experience.

Many residents of Willowbrook living near the Sterigenics plant discovered in the summer of 2018--through an Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) report entitled “Evaluation of Potential Health Impacts from Ethylene Oxide Emissions”--that their cancers might have been caused by the ethylene oxide emissions from the sterilization facility. They needed an experienced toxic tort lawyer to help them get justice and they needed Sterigenics to be held accountable if the company had made them sick. So, they turned to the environmental attorneys at The Collins Law Firm because that is exactly what we do: we fight for neighborhoods and families who have been impacted by toxic chemicals and we make polluters take responsibility for the damage they have caused. We have years of experience fighting big polluters, the EPA, and the government– and winning.

According to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, the Sterigenics plant has been emitting ethylene oxide into the surrounding community since at least 1995 and most likely longer. After the EPA tested air samples in the commercial and residential areas within a mile of the plant, the ATSDR determined that “an elevated cancer risk exists for residents and off-site workers in the Willowbrook community surrounding the Sterigenics facility. These elevated risks present a public health hazard to these populations.” In fact, the ASTSDR estimated that Sterigenics’ ethylene oxide emissions were making nearby residents 64 times more likely to get cancer.

Ethylene oxide is a colorless, highly reactive gas that is sometimes used as a sterilizing agent for medical equipment. Sources of ethylene oxide emissions to the air include uncontrolled emissions or venting in industrial settings. Once in the air, ethylene oxide can enter your body when the air is breathed into your lungs. More importantly, Ethylene oxide has been listed on the federal list of carcinogens as “reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen” since 1985. In 2000, that listing was changed to “known to be a human carcinogen“. Finally, in 2016, the US EPA released a new assessment of ethylene oxide that concluded that it was 30 times more likely to cause cancer than previously believed.

According to multiple federal agencies, there is strong evidence in human scientific studies that ethylene oxide is linked to an increased risk of:

• Breast cancer
• Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
• Leukemia
• Multiple myeloma
• Lymphomas

There is also some scientific evidence that ethylene oxide may be linked to:

• Stomach cancer
• Pancreatic cancer

Other possible health effects from exposure:

• Miscarriages
• Testicular degeneration

If you work, live or used to live close to the Sterigenics plant in Willowbrook, IL and have been diagnosed with cancer or one of the above health issues, consult your doctor and ask if your illness might have an environmental cause. Then talk to one of our experienced environmental personal injury attorney to see if you may have a lawsuit against the company.

If you or a loved one have been diagnosed with cancer as a result of toxic air pollution you may be able to recover for damages such as:

• Loss of past and future wages
• All medical expenses
• Pain and suffering
• Mental anguish
• Loss of a loved one (in the event a loved one has passed away)

If you believe you have been impacted by the ethylene oxide contamination from the Sterigenics plant in Willowbrook, and have questions about your health or legal options, please call one of the experienced environmental personal injury attorneys at The Collins Law Firm today at (630) 527-1595 to protect your rights. Or call attorney Shawn Collins directly at (630) 527-1595 ext. 221 and let us help you fight back!