Talc Category Archives — Product Liability Lawyer Blog Published by Boston, Massachusetts Product Liability Attorneys

May 15, 2017

$110 Million Awarded in Talcum Powder Case

According to a recent news article from ABA Journal, a jury has just awarded a plaintiff $110 million in a talcum powder lawsuit alleging product liability. The claim was that defendant (Johnson & Johnson) manufactured talcum powder that caused her to develop ovarian cancer. Not only did the jury find this to be true by a clear preponderance of the evidence, they awarded her the largest verdict ever in a talcum powder products liability case.

While this is the largest talcum powder verdict by a long shot, it is not the only large verdict. There have been verdicts of $55 million, $70 million and $72 million in other recent cases. Continue reading

November 21, 2016

Johnson & Johnson Talc Victim Awarded $70 Million

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

According to a recent news article from Fortune, a woman in California has just been awarded $70 million by a jury in what is now the third lost trial for Johnson & Johnson in connection with its liability for cancer-causing baby powder.

This plaintiff, a 62-old-woman from California, had used talcum powder manufactured by the defendant for years for feminine hygiene purposes. She used the baby powder for around 40 years and only stopped when she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer three years ago. The cancer is already in a very advanced stage. She has undergone surgery and extensive cancer treatments, but as her lawyers argued to the jury, she will likely be dead within two years. Continue reading

October 18, 2016

Study: Talc Cancer Risk Greater for African American Women Than Peers

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

A recent study conducted by the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) reveals that African American women are at greater risk of developing cancer caused by talc exposure than their peers who did not use the genital powder.

Study authors noted that while regular use of talcum powder was associated with higher rates of ovarian cancer regardless of where it was applied, users who applied the powder to their genitals showed a 40 percent higher risk of cancer, while those who used the powder for non-genital purposes increased the risk by more than 30 percent.

Joellen Schildkraut, an epidemiologist at the University of Virginia and the lead researcher for this study, told Reuters that black women in America were heavily targeted in marketing campaigns for the body powder. Yet it has no real benefit. Still, Schildkraut began her research as a skeptic. She questioned the fiercely debated issue of whether it caused ovarian cancer and other forms of gynecological cancer. She described herself as a cynic. Her latest findings, on top of what has been previously studied by other researchers, have convinced her. Continue reading