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Smith (P) worked for Leech (D) as a galvanizer. P was required to lift articles, via a crane, into a tank of molten metal. On August 15, 1950, an object spattered out from the tank and burned him on the lip. P treated it and thought nothing of it, but it ended up getting larger. He went to the hospital and discovered that he had cancer. P died 3 years later. P’s widow sued D for damages. D had no dispute over its own negligence but simply its liability for the extent of the eventual injury to P. At trial, it was found that Ds were negligent and that the burn had promoted cancer on tissue, which already had a pre-malignant condition as a result of P’s exposure to tar and tar vapors.

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