A Los Angeles jury has reached a verdict in favor of a woman who allegedly contracted the deadly lung disease mesothelioma after using Colgate-Palmolive’s talcum powder. The jury found the multinational consumer products company 95 percent responsible for the 73-year-old woman’s cancer.

Colgate Palmolive was ordered to pay $13 million to the plaintiff, including $1.4 million in damages to the woman’s husband, the Associated Press reported.

“This is an example of the legal system exposing what a company should have been honest about 50 years ago,” the attorney for plaintiff Judith W. said after the verdict. “Judith [W.] only wanted a jury to hear the truth about this product and hopefully to help others who are similarly exposed.”

Judith told a judge that she used Colgate Palmolive’s Cashmere Bouquet brand scented talcum powder for 15 years, from 1961 to 1976. Federal law did not require commercial talc products to be asbestos-free until 1973.

Jurors determined that Cashmere Bouquet presented “a substantial danger” to consumers, which Colgate failed to warn consumers about, the baby powder lawsuit claims. Accordingly, the jury held Colgate responsible for negligently designing, manufacturing or selling the product.

In a statement, Colgate, which sold the Cashmere Bouquet brand in 1995, denied that their former product played a role in Judith developing mesothelioma.

Baby Powder Cancer

Scientists believe that talcum powder particles, which may contain asbestos, can migrate from the vagina to the ovaries if a woman applies the powder to the genital area for personal hygiene purposes. To reach the ovaries, the particles would travel through the uterus and fallopian tubes.

In 2013, a federal jury found that Johnson & Johnson talc-based powders played a role in the 2006 ovarian cancer diagnosis of a woman who used the powders every day for 30 years. She sued the company for negligence and failure to warn consumers about the baby powder cancer risk.

Jurors reached a decision in that case after hearing from three different doctors who examined extracted cancerous tissues, and concluded that talc particles caused the woman’s cancer.

The American Cancer Society advises that anyone concerned about the link between ovarian cancer and talc avoid or limit their use of products that contain talcum powder. They also recommend cornstarch-based cosmetic products as an alternative, since there is no evidence linking cornstarch powders with any forms of cancer. It is also recommended that women avoid applying baby powder to underwear or sanitary napkins.