{"id":23117,"date":"2024-11-12T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-11-12T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mesotheliomahope.com\/?p=23117"},"modified":"2025-03-10T18:34:20","modified_gmt":"2025-03-10T22:34:20","slug":"arthur-putt-retiree-and-survivor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mesotheliomahope.com\/blog\/arthur-putt-retiree-and-survivor\/","title":{"rendered":"On the Road to Making More Memories: 7+ Years Surviving Mesothelioma"},"content":{"rendered":"

After a decades-long career as an auto mechanic, mesothelioma threw a wrench into Art\u2019s retirement \u2014 but he wasn\u2019t slowing down just yet.<\/em><\/p>\n

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Finding New Roads Together<\/h2>\n

Arthur \u201cArt\u201d Putt decided to retire from his career as an auto mechanic<\/a> just to take it easy. Ready for a new adventure, he packed up his RV and moved from Indiana to Arizona in the summer of 1983.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s where he met Jan, a nurse who shared his love for travel. A few months later, Art and Jan married in Las Vegas and hit the road, exploring the U.S. side by side and loving every minute of it.<\/p>\n

The couple ended up in Tennessee, taking seasonal contracts at Dollywood, a theme park jointly owned by country singer-songwriter Dolly Parton. Despite suffering a stroke a few days after starting work, Art continued to sell souvenirs and chat with travelers.<\/p>\n

\u201cI sold so many souvenir mugs that they wanted me to do nothing but that. There\u2019s nobody ever to this day that\u2019s sold more mugs than I did<\/strong>.\u201d
\n\u2013 Art Putt, 7+ year mesothelioma survivor<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

This \u201cshort\u201d stopover turned into over a decade at Dollywood. The Putts settled down in Kodak, Tennessee, and were living life to the fullest until a devastating diagnosis \u2014 mesothelioma<\/a> \u2014 changed everything.<\/p>\n

Get our Free Mesothelioma Survivors Guide<\/strong> to learn more about Art\u2019s journey and how other patients have coped with their diagnosis.<\/p>\n

Hitting a Roadblock<\/h2>\n

In 2018, Art\u2019s mesothelioma symptoms<\/a> began with a hacking cough that wouldn\u2019t quit. It got so bad he had to bring a cup everywhere to catch the phlegm he was bringing up.<\/p>\n

He decided to go to the doctor, who said Art had pneumonia. However, the radiologist wasn\u2019t convinced and ordered additional imaging scans, which revealed pleural mesothelioma<\/a>, a type of asbestos-caused cancer that forms in the lung lining.<\/p>\n

As an auto mechanic in California and Indiana, Art had worked with brake pads that released asbestos fibers \u2013 a hidden danger that only surfaced decades later because of mesothelioma\u2019s long latency period<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe did brakes the old-fashioned way. We did a lot of grinding with sandpaper to prepare the brake pads<\/a> we put in and the new ones. We had dust everywhere. We didn\u2019t know any better.<\/strong>\u201d
\n\u2013 Art Putt, 7+ year mesothelioma survivor<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Many companies knew asbestos was dangerous but kept it a secret, exposing millions, including mechanics like Art.<\/p>\n