There is mounting evidence that links Johnson and Johnson Baby Powder to ovarian cancer. In fact, women who use the product regularly over an extended period of time are at an increased risk of developing ovarian cancer. Talcum powder has been marketed and sold as a hygiene product for over a century. In 1971, researchers discovered a link between applying talcum powder to female genitals and a 30% greater risk of ovarian cancer. Now, Johnson & Johnson faces thousands of lawsuits because they failed to disclose the risk of talcum and its link to ovarian cancer. If you believe that you developed ovarian cancer after using talc products, contact The Carlson Law Firm.

Talc is the softest mineral on Earth and occurs naturally through the world. Mining for the substance occurs in above ground talc mines in dozens of countries. It one of the most widely used substances in the world. In powder form, talc absorbs moisture and cuts down on friction. It’s found use in keeping skin dry and helping prevent rashes.

Talcum powder, or baby powder, is powdered talc, that consists of magnesium, silicon, and oxygen. Talc is a popular component of skincare and hygiene products because it keeps skin smooth and dry. It has also been used to help with rashes and promote “freshness” for women in their genital areas. Because talcum powder is classified as a cosmetic product, it doesn’t fall under the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulation. Because of this lack in oversight, warnings about its uses were not as strictly required as they would be for a medication.

In its natural form, some talc contains asbestos. Asbestos is a known carcinogen that leads to cancer in and around the lungs when inhaled.

Johnson & Johnson was founded in 1886 and began selling baby powder shortly after its founding. One of the company’s first products were pain relief adhesives. Customers complained that removing the adhesives left them with skin irritation. In response, J&J sent customers a small container of talc to soothe any rashes.

Soon, customers reported that talc also seemed to help babies with diaper rash. In 1894, the company introduced Baby powder, made of 99.8 percent of talc and .2 percent of fragrant oils.

From the early 1900s, Johnson & Johnson worked to convince women that they needed to powder themselves. The company ran taglines like “best for baby, best for you” in 1913. Their campaign was so effective that by 2008, the company made claims that baby powder scents were more recognizable than that of chocolate, coconut or mothballs.

Presently, Johnson &  Johnson is worth $70 billion. In 2014, the company’s baby powder sales totaled about $374 million. Talcum powder has several other uses in several products.

The first baby powder ovarian cancer lawsuit was won against Johnson & Johnson in federal court in 2013.

During the course of the trial, a Johnson & Johnson attorney admitted the company was aware of the link between talcum powder and cancer but viewed the risk as insignificant and neglected to warn consumers of the potential danger on the product’s label. At the same time, the company was increasing the marketing activities of its products, particularly in the African-American and Hispanic demographics.

Since 2013, a number of lawsuits have resulted in large jury awards against Johnson & Johnson.  Notable cases include:

• 2016 – $72 million awarded to the family of a woman who died from ovarian cancer after using talcum powder for decades
• 2016 – $55 million to a woman who required multiple surgeries, including hysterectomy due to ovarian cancer
• 2016 – $70 million award a woman who was diagnosed with terminal ovarian cancer and who had used talcum powder for 40 years
• 2017 – $417 million to a woman who developed terminal ovarian cancer after using talcum powder for a number of years
• 2017 – $110 million to an ovarian cancer patient who had used talcum powder for 40 years
• 2018 – A Missouri jury awarded $4.69 billion to a group of 22 women who were all diagnosed with ovarian cancer and who had used talcum powder products for a number of years
• 2019 – J&J appeals the $4.69B judgment while fending off 13,000 other similar lawsuits across the US
• 2019 – A Daubert hearing in Multidistrict Litigation (MDL) begins. Given similar questions of fact and law raised in complaints filed throughout the federal court system, all talcum powder cancer cases are consolidated for pretrial proceedings as part of a MDL, which is centralized before U.S. District Judge Freda L. Wolfson in the District of New Jersey.
• 2020 – Johnson & Johnson stops selling baby powder in the United States and Canada.

In a rare move for the company, on Jan. 6, 2020, a California judge announced that Johnson & Johnson ended its latest talc trial with a midtrial settlement. The settlement stopped a jury from hearing about the U.S. FDA’s finding of asbestos in a random bottle of talc. In short, the settlements prevent the jury from weighing on the FDA’s October finding.

The trial began on Dec. 2, but took a long break for the holiday season on Dec. 20.

“I have some news,” Alameda County Judge Stephen Kaus said on Jan. 6. “Which is that the parties have settled their case. I don’t know what the settlement is, I just know it’s resolved.”

According to Bloomberg, Johnson & Johnson agreed to pay a woman more than $2 million to resolve her claims that asbestos-contaminated baby powder caused her ovarian cancer.

While the jury didn’t hear the FDA’s finding, they did hear during opening statements that a blind test of J&J talc contained chrysotile asbestos in one same. The FDA and J&J announced a voluntary recall of a large lot of its famous Baby Powder. Later, J&J announced that a third-party lab found no asbestos.

Johnson & Johnson is not the only company responsible for selling asbestos-laden, talc-based products. Other products named in lawsuits include:

• Johnson & Johnson Shower To Shower® Absorbent Body Powder And Baby Powder
• CVS Baby Powder
• Rite Aid Baby Powder
• Angel Of Mine Baby Powder
• Family Dollar Mild Baby Powder
• Anti Monkey Butt Body Powder
• Colgate-Palmolive Cashmere Bouquet®

Baby powder is cosmetic; which means it skirts the FDA review and approval process. The 1938 Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act is a 345-page document. However, only two of those pages are devoted to the safety of cosmetics.

As written, the law does not require FDA approval for cosmetic products or the ingredients put into the products (with the exception of color additives). However, the law leaves room for the FDA to regulate and make laws around cosmetics on the market. Both the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act grant the FDA the authority to regulate cosmetics.

Between September 2009 and September 2010, the FDA conducted a study on talcum powder through an independent laboratory. The study only looked for the presence of asbestos in the product. While the study found no asbestos in the talcum powder, the study was limited because only four talc suppliers submitted products for sampling.

On its website, the FDA reports, “finds these results informative, they do not prove that most or all talc or talc-containing cosmetic products currently marketed in the United States are likely to be free of asbestos contamination. As always, when potential public health concerns are raised, we will continue to monitor for new information and take appropriate actions to protect the public health.”

While the FDA is slow to recognize the serious effects of talc powder, The Carlson Law Firm knows that the science is on your side. Schedule a free consultation with a talcum lawsuit lawyer today to discuss your talcum powder cancer lawsuit.

The most dangerous potential side effect from the use of talcum powder by women is ovarian cancer, caused by the powder entering the ovaries through the vagina.

Women who use talcum powder in their groin area have a 20 to 30 percent greater risk of developing ovarian cancer. The more often a woman uses it, the more likely she will experience ovarian cancer.

Illnesses associated with the frequent use of talcum powder include:

• Mesothelioma: When inhaling talcum powder over a long period of time, some may develop a serious lung disease known as Mesothelioma. According to new research talcum powder can contain asbestos. Inhaling asbestos fibers is the primary cause of pleural mesothelioma as well as other very serious respiratory ailments.
• Ovarian cancer:Women have been using body powders and feminine hygiene products with talc for years. The particles of the talcum powder have traveled through the vagina into the uterus and Fallopian tubes into the ovaries. Research shows that this can cause inflammation and increase the risk of ovarian cancer in women.
• Talcosis: This is a condition where there is acute or chronic lung irritation. When a person inhales particles of the powder, it can cause fast and shallow breathing, coughing and wheezing.

In most cases, one type of research is not enough to determine the far-reaching effects of talc powder. Researchers use two primary types of studies to figure out if talc use or exposure leads to cancer:

• Lab Studies: Usually consist of testing on animals. Scientists will use very large doses of talcum to see if it causes tumors or other health problems. Researchers might also expose cells in a lab dish to the substance to see if it causes the types of changes seen in cancer cells.
• Studies in People: Scientist can also look at cancer rates in different groups of people. For example, a study might compare the cancer rate in a group exposed to a substance to the rate of a group who were never exposed to a substance. Or, the study may compare the rate of cancer of those exposed to a substance against the general population. In these cases, it may sometimes be hard to know what the results of mean. There are often a number of factors that might affect the results.

Neither type of study provides enough evidence on its own. For this reason, researchers usually take both lab-based and human exposure studies into consideration when trying to figure out if something actually causes cancer.

There have been several studies that connect ovarian cancer to talcum powder. The studies show that talcum powder particles may travel through the vagina, uterus and fallopian tubes to the ovaries.  This occurs when a user applies talc powder to the genital area, sanitary napkins, diaphragms or condoms.

Many case-control studies have found an increase in ovarian cancer in prolonged talcum powder use. For any individual women, there is an increased risk. In fact, many women diagnosed with ovarian cancer after using talcum powder products have no family history of ovarian cancer.

Almost 50 years ago, British researches began looking at ovarian tumors and found talc particles deeply embedded in 76 percent of the ovarian tumors they observed. The study published in 1971 and was the first to raise concerns about the possibility that talcum powder increased ovarian cancer risks.

In 1982, epidemiologist Daniel Cramer of Brigham & Women’s Hospital in Bosten published a study in the medical journal Cancer. Cramer’s study showed the first statistical link between genital talc use and ovarian cancer. Shortly after Cramer’s publication, he received a call from an executive at Johnson & Johnson. Cramer said Semple tried to convince him the product was a harmless habit. On the other hand, Cramer tried to convince Semple that women should be warned of the risks presented from talcum powder use. Cramer later served as a paid expert and witness for the plaintiff in a 2011 court filing.

For years, companies have known about the link between talc powder and ovarian cancer, however, they have continued to sell and encourage its use among women. This failure to protect women from a clearly dangerous product has opened these companies up talcum powder cancer lawsuits. If you or a loved one have developed ovarian cancer or mesothelioma because of a prolonged cosmetic talc powder use, contact a talcum lawsuit lawyer today.

Black women report significantly higher numbers of feminine hygiene products, including genital powder. A 2015 study found that 44 percent of Black women reported using talcum powder, compared to 30 percent of white women and 29 percent of Hispanic women. Additionally, in the early 90s, the use of these products was significantly higher in the Black and Hispanic communities.

Social conditioning predisposes Black women to do more for body odors. As a result, Johnson & Johnson made an effort in the early 1990s to specifically target Black and Hispanic women.

If you or a loved one has fallen ill with a talc powder-related cancer, contact The Carlson Law Firm. A talcum lawsuit lawyer from our firm can help you navigate the legal system and get the recovery you deserve. A talcum powder cancer lawsuit may be the answer to helping you with mounting medical bills and other damages.

In 2006, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) recognized talc as a possible carcinogen if used by women in the genital area. Talcum powder lawsuits state that the manufacturers failed to warn users of the increased cancer risks. The suits allege that these risks stem from cosmetic use in genital areas.

Plaintiffs’ attorneys claim the manufacturers of talcum powder have known for more than 40 years there is a link between using the product near the genital area and ovarian cancer. However, these companies intentionally chose not to warn women that the powder could cause cancer by entering the vagina after application on or around the genital area.

While recent headlines have primarily focused on Johnson & Johnson’s baby powder, other companies have also come under fire for talc powder products. Colgate-Palmolive settled a mesothelioma lawsuit after a woman developed the lung disease.

If you believe that your cancer is the result of a cosmetic talcum powder product, contact The Carlson Law Firm. We have talcum lawsuit lawyer who can assist with your talcum powder cancer lawsuit.

Record $417M Award In Lawsuit Linking Baby Powder To Cancer

(ABC NEWS) – A Los Angeles jury award $417 million to a hospitalized woman who claimed that talc, an ingredient in Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder caused her ovarian cancer. She used the company’s product on a daily basis, beginning in the 1950s, until 2016. She received an ovarian cancer diagnosis in 2007, according to court documents.

Colgate-Palmolive Settles Claims Over Asbestos In Its Talc

(BLOOMBERG) – Colgate-Palmolive Co. agreed to settle a lawsuit claiming its talcum-powder products caused a Pennsylvania woman to develop mesothelioma, a fatal lung disease tied to asbestos exposure. The settlement comes as a growing number of talc users accuse manufacturers such as Colgate-Palmolive and Johnson & Johnson of failing to warn consumers that their body powders pose a cancer threat.

2018: Internal Documents Reveal J&J Knew About Asbestos  in Baby Powder

Reports emerged on Dec. 14 that internal Johnson & Johnson documents, examined by Reuters journalists, revealed that the company was aware of its baby powder being tainted with carcinogenic asbestos. Even facing hundreds of lawsuits asserting the company exposed plaintiffs to cancer-causing asbestos, the company insists on the safety and purity of the ubiquitous product. Meanwhile, documents show that J&J has spent decades hiding the dangers of its talc products from regulators and the public at large.

In fact, the documents reveal executives’ concern about a potential government ban of talc, the safety of the product and public backlash over the company’s Baby Powder.

The unearthed documents reveal that the earliest mentions of the tainted talc were from 1957 and 1958 by a consulting lab. Further, documents mention asbestos at various times into the early 2000s. These findings were from scientists at J&J, as well as outside labs and J&J’s supplier.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration considered limiting asbestos in talc product in 1976. At the time, J&J claimed asbestos had not been detected in its product. This claim was in spite of the fact that “at least three tests by three different labs from 1972 to 1975 found asbestos in talc.” In one of these cases, the levels reported were rather high.

A New York Times report found that two different J&J executives raised concerns about the company’s talc product in the 1970s. The first recommended to senior staff in 1971 that the company upgrade its quality control of talc. Two years later in 1973, another executive said the company should no longer assume that its talc mines were asbestos-free.

2020: U.S. Judge Rules that J&J must Defend Federal Talc Lawsuit

In April 2020, U.S. District Judge Freda Wolfson of New Jersey ruled that the thousands of lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson baby powder and talc products can move forward. As of 2020, J&J faces more than 16,000 talc-related lawsuits nationwide.

Johnson & Johnson sought to bar all plaintiff experts from testifying in a U.S. District Court. If allowed, this would’ve effectively wiped out all of the cases before Judge Wolfson. While the Judge’s ruling allows plaintiffs to present expert testimony that talc could be contaminated with asbestos, it does not allow experts to testify that the product itself causes cancer.

May 2020: Johnson & Johnson pulls baby powder from shelves in U.S. and Canada

On May 19, 2020, Johnson & Johnson announced that it will no longer sell its talcum-based powder in the U.S. and Canada. Sales have dropped by more than 60% in the last three years as the company is facing thousands of lawsuits and billions of dollars in damages of ovarian cancer and other claims. The company is facing almost 19,400 lawsuits related to claims that its talcum powder caused cancer. It has been ordered to pay billions of dollars in damages in several jury trials but has appealed each of them. While the company maintains that decades of scientific medical experts have found the product to be safe, several other studies have found asbestos in the product—including a study performed by one J&J’s own experts. Johnson & Johnson will still sell its cornstarch-based baby powder in the U.S. and Canada.