Asbestos Textile Institute Air Hygiene Committee Meeting with Company Doctors and Dr. Schepers (1954)

The report of the Asbestos Textile Institute's Air Hygiene Committee meeting of October 6, 1954, with company doctors including Dr. Kenneth W. Smith of Johns-Manville and Dr. G. W. H. Schepers of the Saranac Laboratory, followed by the Institute's minutes of October 7. Dr. P. A. Theodos proposed a hospital study of asbestosis and heart function. The committee's report recorded that Dr. Theodos had classified cases "to be pulmonary fibrosis" so that insurance paid without comment, and that the insurance form's question "Is accident, illness or disease caused by the occupation?" had always been answered "No." Dr. Smith explained how members could send autopsy specimens to Saranac, and Dr. Schepers spoke on asbestosis and lung cancer.

What it shows

Dr. Smith told the committee that autopsy reports would show "the extent of the disease process and, therefore, the extent of Workmen's Compensation liability for a particular case." Dr. Schepers reported that the West German government had recognized lung cancer caused by asbestos in 1951 and that a British survey found lung cancer about ten times more often with asbestosis than with silicosis, though the minutes add that North American experience was said to differ. The committee then proposed that asbestos be placed in animal lungs "so that facts may be determined to combat unjust compensation claims." The October 7 minutes show the Theodos study approved for members who chose to join, and the lung cancer study sent back for a more specific plan.

In Johns-Manville's index

Johns-Manville's legal department indexed the Motley 1,000 in 1984. Its index describes this document as follows:

ATI Meeting Minutes, 10/6/54 - Air Hygiene Committee. Doctors including Drs. K. Smith and G. W. Schepers attended. Dr. P.A. Theodos (Asten-Hill) presents his proposal for research regarding heart function and asbestosis. Dr. Theodos points out that by describing a diagnosis as "pulmonary fibrosis," a member company could obtain indemnity from the company's medical insurance carrier. In such instances Dr. Theodos also recommends that the question of whether the illness or disease was caused by the occupation be answered in the negative. Dr. Theodos states that this has never been challenged by the insurance companies and that the claims have been paid without comment. Dr. K. Smith explains how members can obtain autopsy specimen studies from Saranac Laboratory. Such autopsy reports would permit an evaluation of the extent of disease in a manner not possible through X-ray and clinical diagnosis, and thereby the extent of workers' compensation liability might also be ascertained. Dr. G. W. Schepers makes a presentation on the relationship of asbestos to lung cancer and summarizes findings in West Germany and Britain which suggest a clear correlation. Attached to these Minutes is a copy of a "Prospectus for the Study of Asbestosis," by Dr. P.A. Theodos. This proposal suggests that a group of 50 patients be studied for the purpose of determining the exact nature of the respiratory impairment produced and the relationship of the heart and pulmonary circulation to the lung changes caused by asbestosis. ATI Meeting Minutes, 10/6/54 - Board of Governors. The portion pertaining to the report of the Air Hygiene Committee describes that Committee's meeting with member company doctors and Dr. Schepers. Reports that the proposed study by Dr. Theodos was approved and the recommendation for a study to determine the relationship between asbestos and lung cancer was returned to the Air Hygiene Committee for a more detailed proposal.

Related documents

• Asbestos Textile Institute Minutes Calling an Autopsy Study Ill-Advised (1955)
• Asbestos Textile Institute Air Hygiene Committee and Board of Governors Minutes on Insurance Forms, Autopsies and Lung Cancer (1954)

About this copy

This is document 337 of the Motley 1,000, from the set the Manville Personal Injury Settlement Trust's records facility certified as true copies, pages CRMC-Motley1000-Subj-001689 to CRMC-Motley1000-Subj-001694.