Merlin Olsen Dead of Mesothelioma

Merlin Olsen, former football great and one of the most memorable stars on the long-running television series, Little House on the Prairie, died March 11 at a medical center in Duarte City outside Los Angeles, California, of what had previously been diagnosed as mesothelioma.

Olsen, a former Los Angeles Rams defensive lineman, played for the Rams from 1962-1976 as part of a group known as the "Fearsome Foursome" (Olsen, David, Jones, Lamar Lundy and Rosie Greer). As a Rams player, Olsen earned a slot on the 1999 millennium list of 100 Greatest Football Players. Before that, Olsen was All-American at Utah State, his alma mater, and was inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame in 1980.

After his football career, Olsen was both a football game commentator, from the broadcast booth, and an advertiser for FTD florists, but his best-known role was as Jonathon Garvey on Little House on the Prairie, a series about a pioneer family set in 19th century Minnesota. Olsen also played roles or leading parts in two other TV series; Father Murphy (which ran from 1981 to 1983) and Aaron's Way (1988).

Olsen, 69, is survived by his wife, Susan, three children, three brothers, five sisters and four grandchildren. Earlier this year, in an interview, Olsen attributed his form of mesothelioma - pleural mesothelioma - to his employment when he was about 11 years old, when he worked after school doing manual labor and was likely exposed to asbestos.

Olsen also attributed his disease to adult exposure, handling drywall, and his suit - filed in December of 2009 - sought damages from several companies, including 20th Century Fox, NBC Studios, NBC Universal, Lennox Industries and Sherwin Williams.

The association between Olsen, asbestos, and 20th Century Fox and NBC has never been divulged, but Lennox Industries, a heating, cooling and ventilation (HVAC) manufacturer, used the fibrous mineral as insulation in its products. The association with Sherwin Williams is also somewhat obscure, except that some textured house paints in the past were known to contain asbestos.

Prior to his death, Olsen was reportedly undergoing chemotherapy, one of the preferred treatments in cases of malignant pleural mesothelioma. In the case of chemotherapy, most oncologists and physicians now favor dual chemotherapy, usually using Alimta in combination with Cisplatin, which is also the only FDA-approved regimen.

Other preferred treatment modalities include surgery to remove the tumor, and radiation (alone, or post-surgery) to reduce the size of tumors. In most cases, however, even the most radical combination treatments are not known to extend prognoses significantly beyond the typical one year, with the best results achieving an average of 14 months from diagnosis to death.

Mesothelioma, known as one of the "silent killer" diseases, is caused by asbestos, whose microscopic fibers - inhaled or ingested by swallowing saliva - end up in mesothelial tissues, causing erosion and sometimes tumors, a percentage of which are malignant.

Unfortunately, the first one to five decades of the disease produce few if any symptoms, and by the time patients develop symptoms severe enough to send them to a physician, the tumors have spread and invaded so much vital tissue - and so many organs - that little can be done. Chemotherapy, surgery and radiation in advanced mesothelioma are largely palliative; that is, aimed at reducing tumor size to improve breathing and relieving pain.

Olsen, recognized as one of the all-time great defensive tackles in pro football, was honored last year when Utah State named its football field after him. At that time, he was already too ill to attend the dedication, and his son Nathan represented him in accepting the honor.

Sources: Washington Post, CMN News Network, IMDB, Washington state Dept of Ecology

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