A recent Johnson & Johnson lawsuit alleges a link between baby powder and ovarian cancer that, for one Ohio woman, led to fatal consequences.

The lawsuit was filed against Johnson & Johnson by plaintiff Roy V. on behalf of his late mother, Roberta V. after she died from ovarian cancer.

According to the lawsuit, Roberta was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2014, ultimately dying of the dangerous disease on January 7, 2015.

Roberta used Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder for the entirety of her adult life, the lawsuit claims, as part of her daily feminine hygiene routine. Given that she used the product daily for decades, she is estimated to have used the product in this fashion around 20,000 times.

The lawsuit notes that using Johnson & Johnson baby powder as a feminine hygiene product on the genitals is “exactly as instructed and advertised” by Johnson & Johnson itself, which campaigned over a long period of time for women to purchase their product for this use.

The lawsuit also alleges that, despite this marketing push, there was no warning on the baby powder product that this use would or could cause a consumer to develop ovarian cancer.

The baby powder and ovarian cancer lawsuit was filed on multiple counts, including failure to warn, design and/or manufacturing defect, negligence, breach of express warranty, punitive damages, negligent misrepresentation, fraudulent concealment, fraud, and wrongful death, among others.

Baby Powder and Ovarian Cancer Background

Johnson & Johnson baby powder is a widely used product, most often used to prevent diaper rashes in young children. The product is also used by adults, in their shoes, under the arms, and other personal hygiene routines.

Johnson & Johnson has encouraged and heavily marketed its baby powder over the years as a personal hygiene tool. Indeed, a large number of women have regularly used these talcum baby powder products as part of their daily hygiene routine for years.

According to talcum powder cancer lawsuits, studies have shown a substantial connection between talc based baby powder and ovarian cancer, including evidence of talc within some ovarian tumors.

Plaintiffs claim that this evidence should be cause for action, but Johnson & Johnson and other companies that produce talc-based baby powders have failed to give adequate warning about these dangers on their products.

Ovarian cancer is a particularly dangerous form of cancer and affects thousands of women. According to the Cancer Prevention Coalition, as many as 14,000 women die from ovarian cancer per year. Ovarian cancer is a difficult disease to detect, and the survival rate for women with ovarian cancer is especially low.

Baby Powder Cancer Lawsuits

Women claim that adequate knowledge of these potentially serious risks would have prevented them from using the product, and therefore would have allowed them to avoid ovarian cancer diagnosis altogether.

If you or someone you know has used Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder or a similar powder product containing talc and have since been diagnosed with ovarian cancer, you may be able to file a baby powder cancer lawsuit.

The Baby Powder and Ovarian Cancer Lawsuit is Case No. 5:17-cv-00016-SL, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Eastern Division.