Famous people who died of Mesothelioma, a deadly form of cancer

By Ahmet Abdulaziz….

“Mesothelioma” is one of the various types of cancer. Though statistically, it may appear not in the forefront, however, most of Mesothelioma patients, die rather early, after being diagnosed. Exposure to asbestos has been considered the prime reason for it. In the USA only, around 3,000 fresh cases have been recorded.

Steve McQueen, one of Hollywood’s most celebrated actors of the 1960s and 1970s, died on 7th November 1980, due to Mesothelioma. He is best known for his performance in blockbusters like “Bullitt”, “The Towering Inferno”, and “The Great Escape”. The last one is still one of my favourite films. He lost his life while undergoing an experimental treatment for Mesothelioma. He was just 50 at that time.

But Steve was not the only celebrity who had lost their lives to this lethal cancer. There are some more names, who met the same fate. I would like to discuss some of them, also because the (7th November 2022) just passing, is the 42nd anniversary of Steve McQueen’s death. I found a list of some famous American actors/musicians, who were diagnosed with Mesothelioma, and lost their lives.

Edward Matthew Lauter II lost his life in 2013. He is best known for his career commencing from 1971, in the TV show “Mannix”. His career continued there for about fifty years. He acted as Captain Wilhelm Knauer in the 1974 version of “The Longest Yard”. He was a well-known, very talented actor who had worked with many including Alfred Hitchcock, Jim Carrey, and Burt Lancaster, just to name a few. Unfortunately, he lost his life to Mesothelioma at the age of 75.

Actor Paul Gleason succumbed to Mesothelioma, at the age of 67 in 2006. His acting career spanned over half a century. In total, he appeared in 145 movies and television shows. He acted in films like “Trading Places”, “Die Hard”, “Boiling Point” and “Miami Blues. He reportedly contracted the disease during his teens while working as a Construction worker, during the 1950s. He died just a month after diagnosis.

Actor Sean Sasser succumbed to Mesothelioma, at the age of 45. He was well known for his part in “The Real World” of MTV. But he was also known as an LGBT advocate and HIV educator. He was an influential AIDS activist and played an important role in the first White House AIDS Conference, held in 1995.

Musician Joe Sample is also one such celebrity who lost his life to Mesothelioma, at the age of 75, in 2014. He was a well-known and highly talented pianist and composer. He was one of the founding members of “The Crusaders”. He remained attached to musicians of very high calibre, including B.B.King, Eric Clapton, Miles Davis, etc.

“Exposure to asbestos” has been considered as the prime reason for Mesothelioma, in which some minerals formed from the microscopic fibers, get into the lungs. These microscopic fibers have usually been used in construction.  They stuck to the lungs for quite a long period of time. The ultimate damage made to the lungs, this way, has unfortunately it had been noticed when it’s too late. That’s one reason why persons with Mesothelioma do not last long. The symptoms usually take a period of about 20-60 years, when the tumors inside the lungs grow and spread.

Sadly mostly 2% – 10% of people exposed to asbestos for quite a long period, develop pleural mesothelioma.

The average life expectancy of mesothelioma patients is said to be between 12 to 22 months, however, Paul Kraus is an exception. At the age of 52, in June 1997, he was diagnosed with this lethal form of cancer. However, he took an all-aggressive approach to face the death threat from Mesothelioma. He survived the disease and is the only survivor who seems to have defeated it. He has written a detailed account of how he managed his fight with the disease, in his books. I would like to recommend my readers to have a look at his story, on the following link by clicking below..

https://www.mesotheliomaguide.com/survivor-stories/paul-kraus/