A TERMINAL lung cancer sufferer is appealing for help from his former colleagues at Aladdin Industries Ltd factory in Greenford, where he worked in the 1960s.

David Field, 67, was diagnosed in September last year with mesothelioma, an incurable lung cancer associated with inhaling asbestos fibres.

In 1966, when he was 19, he worked as a labourer in the Aladdin factory, which manufactured paraffin lamps and heaters.

The grandfather-of-two believes he was exposed to asbestos at that time.

With the help of the National Asbestos Helpline, he is seeking workers from the factory to help him secure financial support needed for his care and his family’s future.

Mr Field said he remembers regularly entering an area where about a dozen women made the paraffin heaters.

He said: “My plan for retirement was to have lived a longer life. I could feel very bitter, but I’ve got mesothelioma and that’s that. I can’t do a lot about it and I’ve got to get on with it.

“I can’t exert myself or even walk up an incline because I get out of breath very quickly.

“If I take it easy I’m alright but I’ve got two grandchildren and one of them is football mad. I’d love to have a kick about with him but a couple of kicks and that would be about it.”

Mesothelioma causes around 2,500 deaths every year, according to the latest Health and Safety Executive (HSE) figures, and the numbers continuing to rise.

According to the Department of Work and Pensions, 53,000 British people will die from mesothelioma between 2013 and 2037.

Jan Garvey from the National Asbestos Helpline, which advises on asbestos-related disease claims, said they desperately want to hear from Mr Field's former colleagues and would keep their names confidential.

He said: “David has worked hard all his life and was looking forward to a long retirement spent with family and friends.

“It is a cruel and heart-breaking disease, and - like every other asbestos victim – David deserves quality care, justice and security for his family.”

Contact Mr Garvey on freephone 0800 043 6635, by emailing jan@nationalasbestos.co.uk or visit www.nationalasbestos.co.uk