California is looking to ban the creation or installation of man-made quartz amid cases of a fatal lung disease that increasingly affects workers who carve the material to make kitchen countertops.
asserted
who → look → countertops
California’s Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board is expected to pass the emergency regulation for man-made quartz in October, indicating a growing concern over the preferred alternative to granite and marble.
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Board → expect → granite
The ban would be for manufactured stone that contains more than 1 percent of crystalline silica.
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that → manufacture → silica
The state is expected to review the regulation before it becomes law.
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it → expect → regulation
Crystalline silica, which is highly concentrated in man-made quartz, is spread into the air as dust when quartz is cut.
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quartz → make → dust
This can, in turn, affect the lungs, which react with an aggressive immune response.
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which → affect → response
Scar tissue forms, leading to the killing of the lung.
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tissue → form → lung
Once patients begin suffering from silicosis, they often need a single or double lung transplant.
Nearly all of the victims have been men, with about half of them in Los Angeles County, the report said.
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report → begin → County
One of those victims is Enrique Gonzalez, a San Fernando Valley stone worker who has been unable to work for the past two years after developing silicosis from years of working in granite and stone manufacturing.
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who → work → manufacturing
Gonzalez’s family previously told the California Post his disease left the family struggling to cover medical expenses and everyday costs.
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disease → tell → expenses
His daughter, Edith Gonzalez, 30, said that her father’s health started improving only after the lung transplant he received this summer.
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he → say → transplant
“He has recovered really well from the lung transplant.
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He → recover → transplant
His body took it really well.
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body → take → it
He is showing signs of improvement, like right away,” Gonzalez said.
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Gonzalez → show → improvement
“Before he got his lung transplant, he got really, really bad.
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he → get → transplant
Like his condition was very bad, where he got intubated because he couldn’t breathe, even just a little bit.”
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he → intubate → ?
Fortunately, Gonzalez said, her father was already on the transplant list by the time his condition became critical.
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condition → say → time
The family had initially been warned that finding donor lungs could take years.
uncertain
finding → warn → years
“So thankfully, when his condition got really bad, he had that lung transplant,” she said.
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she → get → transplant
Before the procedure, even walking short distances had become extremely difficult.
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walking → walk → distances
Gonzalez said her father used a cane and often needed a wheelchair to get from the car to medical appointments or the emergency room.
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father → say → appointments
Even while using supplemental oxygen, he would frequently become short of breath.
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he → use → breath
Now, his life looks dramatically different.
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life → look → ?
“Right after he got his lung transplant, obviously yes he had some help with walking and support, but now he doesn’t need a cane.
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he → get → cane
He doesn’t need a wheelchair,” Gonzalez said.
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Gonzalez → need → wheelchair
“He’s able to do his morning and evening walks.
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He → ’ → walks
He’s like a new person.”
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He → ’ → person
His daughter described him as a quiet, family-oriented man who spent much of his life working and was the household’s primary breadwinner.
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who → describe → life
“He’s always just been at home, gone to work, and back home,” she said.
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she → go → work
The transplant marks a major turnaround for Gonzalez, but his recovery is far from over.
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recovery → mark → Gonzalez
His daughter said he remains under significant restrictions and spends much of his time attending medical appointments, undergoing physical therapy and following up with doctors.
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he → say → doctors
He can’t go to a lot of places,” she said.
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she → go → places
“So right now it’s all been about his recovery of just staying home and going to the doctors.”
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it → stay → doctors
With Gonzalez unable to work for the past two years, the family has relied in part on donations through GoFundMe to help cover expenses.
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family → work → expenses
“It has helped a lot because obviously he was not able to work and it did take a toll on us because he has always been the family provider,” Gonzalez said.
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Gonzalez → help → us
“I feel very grateful that he had a second chance at life.”
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he → feel → life
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