World Trade Center cancer and other ailments resulting from the collapse of the twin towers on September 11, 2001, are more prevalent than they were once thought. The original September 11th Victim Compensation Fund was activated right after the famous terrorist attack involving two passenger airplanes in Manhattan, one in Washington, D.C., and one in Pennsylvania.

The aim was to provide monetary resources to injured victims and surviving family members to help with health care, funeral and memorial costs, psychological support including grief and trauma therapy, and survival benefits.

The Compensation Fund also aimed to redirect litigation away from the airline industry for infrastructure stabilization and was a caveat of partaking in the fund’s benefits for those who developed World Trade Center cancer. 

According to a reputable online report, the original fund paid an average of $1.8 million to each family and, before it closed, $7 billion dollars was released. With few exceptions, nearly all of the families that lost a member were compensated. When the fund closed in 2004, it didn’t anticipate the sheer number of World Trade Center cancer cases that would arise in the years following the incident.

World Trade Center Cancer Definition Expanded

In early January 2011, a new 9/11 Victim’s Compensation Fund was established and backed with $7.3 billion dollars allocated from Congress. The fund and its monies were set aside to help the thousands of people that suffered serious respiratory ailments and World Trade Center cancer that has been found to include up to 70 different diagnoses.

A large number of health problems, including World Trade Center cancer, have followed the event and been related to the shocking amount of toxic debris that was shot into the air and was continually stirred up during the cleanup process from Sept. 11, 2001 to May 31, 2002.

This debris included but was not exclusive to burned jet fuel, asbestos fibers, microscopic glass and concrete shards, aluminum and other metals used in the construction of the towers.

Persons who lived, worked or attended school closest to ground zero may qualify for compensation. If you or a loved one resided, worked, went to school, volunteered below Canal Street during the above cleanup time window, you may have a legal claim.

Health costs are skyrocketing and treatment for World Health Center cancer can be prohibitive. Many fail to establish a claim because the process is paperwork intensive and because it is not uncommon to believe the fund is strictly for first responders, firefighters, police officers, and those that put their life on the line that horrific day. A fund administrator has referred to this as “survival guilt.”

Here are just some of the conditions considered to qualify:

• Thyroid Cancer
• Ovarian Cancer
• Head, Neck, and Throat Cancer
• Mesothelioma—Asbestos Cancer or Asbestos-related Diseases
• Lung Cancer
• Bladder Cancer
• Bone Cancer
• Brain Cancer
• Kidney Cancer
• Chronic Respiratory and Sinus Ailments

Those that have suffered or know somebody that has suffered from a World Trade Center cancer by being in the vicinity of the event or its cleanup efforts should fill out our form to request a consultation with an attorney familiar with the compensation fund claims process.