Does Baby Powder Cause Ovarian Cancer?

On August 21, 2017, a Los Angeles jury awarded $417 million to Eva Echeverria, a life-long user of Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder who is dying of ovarian cancer. This is the largest verdict to-date in the talcum powder lawsuit, and the first case tried in California. The jury awarded $347 million in punitive damages, finding that Johnson & Johnson “failed to adequately warn consumers about the cancer risks of its talc-based products,” and that the company “encouraged women to use its products despite knowing of studies linking ovarian cancer to genital talc use,” as reported by Reuters.

Johnson & Johnson has now lost 5 lawsuits, and is facing thousands more. Of the 5 claimants, three were also long-time users of Johnson & Johnson’s Shower-to-Shower, a product specifically aimed as feminine hygiene.

Johnson & Johnson claims it will appeal this decision (as it will the others) because “science” is on its side. However, there are a few things that are pretty consistent when it comes to the victims who have successfully sued the pharmaceutical giant:

• All are life-long users of talcum powder-based products
• All of them have incurable ovarian cancer
• There are studies which support a link between consistent talcum powder use and ovarian cancer
• There are memos from Johnson & Johnson briefly addressing the concern about cancer

At the end of the day, women who used talc-based products like Baby Powder and Shower-to-Shower are developing ovarian cancer at rates greater than those who are not. Does Baby Powder cause ovarian cancer? It very well could.

Know the signs of ovarian cancer

Ovarian cancer is insidious. It affects 1 in 70 women (though the numbers are closer to 1 in 53 for talc product users), and is often undiagnosed until it is in the later stages. According to the American Cancer Society, the most common signs of ovarian cancer include:

• Bloating
• Pelvic or abdominal pain
• Trouble eating or feeling full quickly
• Urinary symptoms such as urgency (always feeling like you have to go) or frequency (having to go often)
• Fatigue
• Upset stomach
• Back pain
• Pain during sex
• Constipation
• Menstrual changes
• Abdominal swelling with weight loss

If you have experienced any of these symptoms persistently, or if they have become more severe, you should seek medical attention immediately. Many of these symptoms could indicate a different or underlying problem, so seeking medical advice is crucial.

McGowan, Hood, Felder & Phillips, LLC is an industry leader in the fight against harmful and defective drugs and devices. If you or your loved one has developed ovarian cancer after years of using talc-based hygiene products, we may be able to help. Please call 803-327-7800 or fill out our contact form, and schedule your free consultation today with an experienced South Carolina defective product lawyer.

Read more:

• Johnson & Johnson Ordered to Pay $417 Million to Ovarian Cancer Victim in Talc Case
• Johnson & Johnson’s Marketing of Talc Products to African-American and Latina Women
• Lawsuit Will Attempt to Conclusively Link Johnson & Johnson Talcum Powder to Ovarian Cancer
• Everything You Need to Know about Johnson & Johnson’s Talc and the Link to Cancer
• Did Johnson & Johnson Market Their Talc Products Specifically to Minority Women?
• Johnson & Johnson’s Talc Cover-Up: A Policy Decades in the Making
• California Woman Awarded $70 Million from Johnson & Johnson for Cancer Causing Talc