Plaintiff Gloria Ristesund used J&J’s talc-based products for feminine hygiene for about 40 years and a doctor diagnosed her with ovarian cancer in 2011.
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“There are studies that go back decades showing that genital use of talcum powder increases the risk of ovarian cancer”, Meadows said.
Ristesund is 62 and says she used Johnson’s baby powder for decades.
Goodrich said Johnson & Johnson is appealing both verdicts while “focusing on the next trial”. In February, J&J was ordered to pay $72 million to an Alabama family after a woman died from a similar claim.
There are more than 1,000 women lined up to sue Johnson & Johnson over just that: cancer diagnoses they attribute to the company’s talcum powder products.
I don’t think Johnson & Johnson deserves quite the opprobrium we reserve for the tobacco companies, since conflicting research did exist, but they and companies like them are setting themselves up for these kinds of lawsuits if they’re not open and transparent with consumers.
About 1,000 of the pending talcum-powder related suits are in St. Louis, while another 200 are filed in New Jersey, according to Jim Onder, who serves as attorney for the plaintiffs in the two recent cases.
Studies done on the products containing talc concluded that not only was it possible that the compound could cause cancer, but they even discovered talc crystals in some uterine tumors from the J&J products that had worked their way into women’s reproductive systems. Multiple scientific and regulatory reviews have determined that talc is safe for use in cosmetic products and the labeling on Johnson’s Baby Powder is appropriate.
Johnson & Johnson has been handed another court loss over claims that its talcum powder causes cancer.
Though Johnson & Johnson declared that they meant to appeal the ruling, the strong case opened the door to the thousands of others.
But Carol Goodrich, spokesperson for Johnson & Johnson Consumer, maintained the safety of talcum use for cosmetic products.
Despite the research cited in the lawsuit, the American Cancer Society suggests there is no conclusive proof that talcum powder causes ovarian cancer.
“Instead of giving a warning, what they did was targeted the groups most at risk for developing ovarian cancer”, specifically marketing to overweight women, he said, according to the Associated Press.
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Talc is a naturally occurring mineral that is mined from the soil. An earlier trial in federal court in South Dakota in 2013 ended with a jury finding that J&J was negligent while deciding not to award damages. What kind of threat does the latest ruling present for the company?
