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| S P E C I A L | Tobacco Under Attack |
Jurors reminded of evils of secondhand smoke
Trial under way on lawsuit by flight attendants
August 20, 1997
Web posted at: 4:13 p.m. EDT (2013 GMT)MIAMI (CNN) -- Jurors in a secondhand-smoke trial were reminded Wednesday of testimony from a heart specialist, who said he'd be "out of a job" if cigarettes didn't exist.
A deposition from Dr. David Celermajer of Australia was read during the trial for the class-action lawsuit filed on behalf of 60,000 flight attendants against the tobacco industry. The plaintiffs contend second-hand smoke on airlines made them sick.
"All passive smoking is exposure to other people's active smoke, plus the sidestream smoke which doesn't go through a filter in combustion, so it might even be more dangerous," said Celermajer, who authored a 1996 New England Journal of Medicine article on passive, or secondhand smoking.
He testified about the presence of atheromas, a fatty substance that builds up in the body's arteries over time. It's presence is affected by diet, lifestyle, and whether or not people smoke, or are exposed to tobacco smoke.
"People who smoke cigarettes get atheroma-induced events much more frequently than people who do not," Celermajer said.
Asked if heart disease would end if cigarettes didn't exist, Celermajer replied, "Heart disease would not stop, but my goodness, I'd be out of a job. People would still get heart disease. People would still get atheroma, but less people."
Celermajer said he had six things to tell his patients. "Rules number one, two and three are: 'Stop smoking! Stop smoking! and Stop smoking!"
"Rules four, five and six are: "Stop living near smokers! Stop breathing other people's smoke! Make your husband give up smoking," etcetera.
Tobacco industry waits its turn
The flight attendants are seeking $5 billion dollars in damages for smoking-related diseases they say they contracted while working in airplane cabins when smoking was still permitted aboard domestic flights.
The plaintiffs are nearing the end of their case. Soon, the tobacco industry will begin its defense.
"We would like to get our case on and let the jury understand what our evidence is," Brown and Williamson Tobacco Corp. attorney Ed Moss told CNN.
"We are going to present evidence -- scientific and medical evidence -- to disprove what the plaintiffs have attempted to do through what I consider to be some rather unscientific evidence," he said.
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