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My mesothelioma journey: carpenter Dan’s story

“Well, at least it’s not lung cancer.”

That was Dan’s reaction to this mesothelioma diagnosis in July 2024. That was how little he knew about mesothelioma.

In fact, he had never even heard the word.

We spoke with Dan and Clee, his wife, to find out more about his asbestos exposure, their journey since diagnosis, and what they have found helpful along the way.

Dan, can you tell us how you came to be exposed to asbestos?

It was back in the 1960s and 70s in the UK.

I was in my early 20’s and working as a carpenter in Wolverhampton where I was lining garage additions with Asbestolux.

It was an asbestos insulating board that we used as it was fire resistant and a good insulator. We also used asbestos soffits. They were flat boards we installed in homes, usually in the eaves.

What was the attitude towards asbestos then?

“Nothing. There was no attitude towards it really. It was used everywhere and we didn’t have any idea it was dangerous.

So we didn’t have any safety equipment at all – no gloves or ask or anything. Nobody wore any kind of safety gear back then.”

Clee, what has been your experience?

As Dan said, we never even thought about asbestos being an issue.

 My kids went to school in the UK. Classrooms were built with it. Kids were making dens out of the things they came across – I’m sure many of those things would have contained asbestos.

Teachers and students are being diagnosed with asbestos-related diseases.

Today, it’s still everywhere. Look at the fences between houses – you still see asbestos fences around the older suburbs in Perth.

People generally ignore it and think it’s ok. Which it is if it’s undisturbed. But 30 or 40 years on, it can start to disintegrate.

But, thankfully, the awareness is there now.

Dan, how did you respond to your diagnosis with mesothelioma in July?  

Well, we all became aware of the risks of asbestos some years ago.

I had heard of asbestosis, but I had never heard of mesothelioma.

So, when I got the diagnosis, I didn’t really know what we were dealing with.

My reaction was, “Well, at least it’s not lung cancer.” So it was a bit of a surprise when we found out more about it.

It’s amazing how much ‘mesothelioma’ comes up now. I hear about it a lot now.

The oncologist and Reflections is the support we’ve had. We’ve been grateful for it.

Clee, how did you both find out about Reflections?

When Dan was dealing with prostate cancer, there was a shadow on his lung not investigated beforehand as it wasn’t growing. But after a PET scan, that’s how we knew.

We saw the oncologist – he was very empathetic – and diagnosed Dan was with pleural mesothelioma.

He gave us the Reflections details and we got in touch.

How have you and Dan found Reflections helpful?

Reflections has been an absolute lifesaver. Meeting with someone who has in-depth knowledge of what mesothelioma is and being straight with us about it. Being able to get that information and not being completely in the dark about it helps a huge amount.

Lizz, Reflections’ Support Nurse Coordinator, has explained it in lay terms to us. Having someone we know that we can contact if we have a problem or question, is incredibly helpful.

Reflections have been excellent – their help and information has also helped us explain it to our adult kids.

Yes, we’re very pleased to have their support.