It may turn out to be the most widespread asbestos damage suit in history. A Texas couple filed suit last month against 58 corporations claiming that their negligence caused the husband’s asbestos-related disease.According to the lawsuit, the couple says that all 58 companies knew the asbestos-containing products were dangerous and all should be held liable.

Exposure to asbestos can cause a number of diseases and respiratory system disorders, including cancer of the pharynx, cancer of the esophagus, stomach cancer, colon cancer, cancer of the rectum, asbestosis, and pleural mesothelioma (cancer in the pleural lining of the lungs).

The most lethal of these is malignant pleural mesothelioma, which can lead to an aggressive form of cancer that may not show symptoms for up to five decades. When it does, it is almost always too late to treat, and most patients diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma die within 14 months of diagnosis.

Asbestos was commonly used in pipe insulation, floor and roofing tiles, tile cement and ceiling panels or sprayed-on insulation throughout the first part of the 20th century. In the 1970s, health officials began to associate its use with various respiratory system disorders, and its use was largely discontinued, but it remains in situ in many locations. In addition, a 1989 ban by the Environmental Protection Agency was overturned in a 1991 court hearing in Louisiana, and products containing asbestos can still be found in the United States.

The defendants are: Ametek, Bondex, Certainteed, Champlain, Cooper Industries, Copes-Vulcan, Crosby Valve, Crown Cork, Durabla, Foseco, Garlock, Georgia Pacific, Guard-Line, Henry Vost Machine, Industrial Holdings Corp., Insulation Co., Kaiser Gypsum, KCG, Murcowall Products, Ogelbay Norton, Owens-Illinois, Parsons E&C, Rapid American, RPM Inc., Sepco Corp., TWC Valve, Uniroyal, Union Carbide (also named as a supplier of raw asbestos); premise owners Chevron, Dupont, Exxon Mobil and Texaco; contractors Able Supply, Bechtel, Daniel International, Fluor and HP Zachary; and manufacturers Allis-Chalmers, Aqua Chem, Crane Co., Elliot Turbo Machinery, FMC Corp., Foster Wheeler, GE, Goulds Pumps, IMO Industries, Ingersoll-Rand, Oakfabco, Peerless, Trane, Viacom, Warren Pumps, Weil-McLain and Zurn.

The suit also co-names Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. for its alleged role in acting as a conspirator with the above-named companies to hide the dangers of asbestos exposure from the public.

The amount of damages sought has not yet been specified, but if the suit is successful in pointing the finger at the companies charged, the monetary award will be less relevant than the legal opinion tying manufacturers, suppliers, users – and even an insurance company – together in a determination of negligent or criminal behavior.