J&J chalks up another defeat in $110 million talc-cancer case
pharmafile | May 5, 2017 | News story | Medical Communications | Johnson & Johnson, baby powder
Johnson & Johnson has suffered another defeat in a lawsuit against its talcum powder product. The latest case stands as the fifth trial over the safety of the product, and resulted in the judge ordering the company to pay $110 million.
In this particular instance, the case related to a Virginia woman who had suggested that she had developed ovarian cancer through using talcum powder for 40 years. She was diagnosed in 2012 and the cancer has since been found to have spread to the liver.
The company is currently facing 2,400 lawsuits related to not having warned consumers about the potential cancer risk of its talc-based products, such as Johnson’s Baby Powder. It has already lost three cases last year, with payments of $72 million, $70 million and $55 million being paid out as a result.
“We are preparing for additional trials this year and we continue to defend the safety of Johnson’s Baby Powder,” Johnson & Johnson released in a statement.
St. Louis, the city where the trial took place, will be the home to many of the cases against J&J. By Missouri law, cases are allowed to be held in the state with no connection to the case. It means that plaintiffs have found the area fertile ground for lawsuits against the company.
In 2006, the International Agency for Research on Cancer classified talc as a possible carcinogen. With evidence appearing in court pointing towards company knowledge of this, the jurors were apparently swayed towards believing that the science was now suggesting that there was a direct link between talc and cancer.
When the FDA reviewed whether there should be a warning label put on the baby powder, in 2014, the motion was rejected. However, with the increase in cases being brought forward, there may be greater momentum towards a review of the science.
Ben Hargreaves
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