Thomas Leo Doran

My case wasn't the typical L&I on the job injury. I was a nuclear worker with a brain tumor linked to my radiation exposure. I have a degree in nuclear technology and worked in the field of Radiation Safety. One day back in 1992, I woke up and my head hurt. I never suffered from migraines or headache...s so I was very concerned when my "headache" didn't go away. My head throbbed, so badly that I would throw up and couldn't get out of bed. That started a nightmare that lasted almost five years. I was labeled a "drug seeker" early on so my efforts to find out why my head hurt was mistaken for "doctor shopping." All I wanted was a MRI to find out if by some chance a nuclear worker could have a brain tumor. I was married with three kids and all of a sudden I couldn't work. I tried to file a L&I claim but nobody knew what was causing my head to hurt. By now my family was on welfare and our medical insurance would not authorize a MRI. Long story short, in 1997 an emergency room doctor ordered a CT scan after my wife grabbed him by his lab jacket and begged him to find out if I was crazy or could I really have something in my head causing all this pain. Twenty minutes later I walked into an office where he was viewing my films and my wife was crying, I said "you found a brain tumor didn't you?" He replied "yes, I did." Ionizing radiation doesn't cause carpal tunnel syndrome or black lung disease, it causes tumors and cancers. If you Google "radiation induced brain tumors" mine is in the top three which led me to believe that my parasagittal meningioma was more likely then not caused by my exposure to ionizing radiation. I was also overexposed to neutron radiation while working at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation which increased the probability of my tumor being linked to my radiation exposures. I thought that I had a slam dunk case, but as I called every attorney in the phone book, I was told that my case would be too difficult and too expensive to prove. There were so many other workers getting sick that Hanford and other USDOE sites started their own compensation program administered by the USDOL (Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Act). Again, I thought my case would be a slam dunk, NOT! I was turned down. Twice! I didn't know what to do. My wife was working three jobs and all I could get was Social Security Disability. Enter Thomas Doran. After telling my story for the millionth time and expecting the same lame excuses from him, he totally surprised me. He apologized for all the pain and grief that I had been put through and he wanted to get me what I deserved. There was no I win he wins, it was we are going to win. I soon found out what he meant when I met his wife and daughter, who are both very capable, intelligent and compassionate. They always treated me as if I were their most important client. My case was not an easy one: medical records had been destroyed, doctors were reluctant to say that my tumor was caused by radiation and the government was more inclined to deny my case then to approve it. Because my diagnosis was made in 1997, we had to prove that I actually became sick in 1992. Problems arose with my past wages and prior government claim adjudicators had dropped the ball. For them, it was cheaper to pay my family death benefits then to compensate me. Through all this, Team Doran never waivered, never gave up and most importantly, never let me give up! Finally the day came when Tod called me up and said it was over. Team Doran had got me a lump sum settlement and a monthly pension for life. They could set me up with direct deposit, but I like to come in every month just to visit with them. Tod, Barb and Traci did more than just win my case, they gave me back my life. By the way, my wife doesn't have to work three jobs anymore, she went back to school and is a nurse now. Thank you Team Doran!!!