A California jury has awarded an asbestos verdict of over $18 million to a mesothelioma victim who says he was exposed to asbestos via talc products.

Plaintiff Philip D. won his asbestos verdict after a six-week long trial against defendant Whittaker Clark & Daniels, a supplier of talc to producers of cosmetics.

The jury deliberated for one day before finding that the defendant had improperly marketed its talc as asbestos-free when it in fact did contain asbestos.

His attorneys say his award is the largest asbestos verdict ever awarded in a lawsuit over asbestos-tainted cosmetic products. They say the jury’s award was $3 million more than the plaintiff had sought in settlement negotiations.

According to the jury’s apportionment of fault, other defendants sharing liability with Whittaker Clark & Daniels include American International Industries, the makers of Clubman Talc; Colgate-Palmolive, the successor to the makers of Mennen Shave Talc; and Shutlon, the  maker  of Old Spice talc.

Asbestos Verdict Based on Decades-Old Exposure

Philip had alleged his mesothelioma originated decades ago, when he was allegedly exposed to talc-based cosmetic products that were tainted with asbestos.

Both asbestos and talc are naturally-occurring minerals, and they both tend to be found together in nature. Today, talc used in cosmetic products like baby powder must first be purged of asbestos.

Talc-based cosmetic products have supposedly been free of asbestos since the 1970s, when new federal laws and regulations tightened the restrictions on asbestos.

Philip’s claims were based on exposure from decades before that era, however. In his asbestos lawsuit, Philip alleged he had been exposed to asbestos-laced talc products as early as 1948, when he used to get haircuts at his father’s barber shop in Pasadena, Calif.

That exposure ultimately led to Philip’s diagnosis of mesothelioma in May 2015, he claimed. His mesothelioma is now at an advanced stage, even after 30 rounds of chemotherapy.

His attorney says despite the new regulations, some asbestos still found its way into commercially available talc products.

The plaintiff’s expert consultants say they found asbestos fibers present in products that are commercially available today.

The FDA conducted surveys of multiple talc suppliers between 2009 and 2010 and found no asbestos in any of the products examined. However, the agency noted that five of the nine talc product suppliers declined to submit samples for testing.

Therefore the agency could not say for sure that there is no asbestos contamination in currently available talc products.

Mesothelioma is a cancer of the double-layered membrane that separates the lungs and heart from the inside of the chest. All cases of mesothelioma are fatal within one to four years of diagnosis. Most patients live only 9 to 12 months after they are diagnosed.

Treatments like surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy are often not effective at slowing or stopping the disease’s progression, but they may help relieve symptoms.

The disease typically is not diagnosed until decades after exposure – which is how Philip’s alleged exposure in the 1940s could be connected to his 2015 diagnosis.

In the United States, asbestos is the only known material that causes mesothelioma.