A West Palm Beach, Fla., woman is celebrating a $1.1 million victory against an asbestos manufacturer, but the happiness is bittersweet, as she must celebrate it alone. Her husband, who would have benefitted most from the lawsuit, died before it came to fruition.

Dennis Kavanaugh worked as a carpenter for more than 30 years, often coming home covered in a snow-like dust — breathing it in, spitting it out — that would kill him slowly, bit by bit for the rest of his life, says an article in the Palm Beach Post.

In 2001, Kavanaugh and his wife Inge learned the upset stomach he’d been dealing with for weeks was the first onset of mesothelioma. In the next year and a half, he would go through intense chemotherapy, lose 50 pounds and repeatedly have large needles stuck into his stomach to drain fluid. But, afraid he would lose his health insurance, he continued to go to work every day despite the pain.

Kavanaugh lived through two trials against Union Carbide, the company that manufactured the asbestos used in the joint compound Kavanaugh sealed wallboard with daily. The first ended in a mistrial, but the second jury found that the company was liable for his illness because it knew the hazards of asbestos and failed to warn its users.

“Who would think the profession you choose could cause you to die?” Inge wonders now.

On June 24, the 4th District Court of Appeal upheld the jury’s $1.153 million award in damages to the Kavanaughs, but the case still isn’t over.

“We respectfully disagree with the opinion that was made, because we feel we did adequate warning,” said Union Carbide Spokesman Scot Wheeler. “While we’d rather not prolong this for the family’s sake, we do believe there are several solid grounds for rehearing, and we most likely will avail ourselves of that option.”

But nevertheless, Inge celebrated the jury’s decision.

“I was actually happy,” she said. “I went to church and thought about him. He never got to hear this verdict. I tell him the words, I know he hears me. It’s a shame it didn’t come when he was alive, because it meant a lot to us for him to know. … It gives my husband peace in heaven.”