A woman’s ovarian cancer lawsuit joins more than 400 others in the multidistrict litigation currently pending against Johnson & Johnson regarding claims that its talcum powder products caused women to develop ovarian cancer.

Plaintiff Tracey N., a Texas resident, is a 60-year-old woman who claims in her ovarian cancer lawsuit that she suffered injury to herself as well as economic loss as a result of the use of Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder. The woman has named Johnson & Johnson, Johnson & Johnson Consumer Inc., Imerys Talc America, Inc. and Personal Care Products Council as the defendants in her lawsuit.

Tracey’s ovarian cancer lawsuit states that she was diagnosed with the condition on April 21, 2014. She states that she began using talcum powder in 1984 and continued using the product until 2015.

Tracy has brought forth a number of causes of action against the defendants including strict products liability for failure to warn, defective manufacture and design, breach of express warranty, breach of implied warranty of merchantability, breach of implied warranty of fitness for a particular purpose, negligence, negligent misrepresentation, fraud, violation of Texas consumer protection laws, fraudulent concealment, civil conspiracy, discovery rule and tolling and punitive damages.

The plaintiff is seeking compensatory damages, punitive damages, interest, costs of suit and any additional relief as deemed just and proper by the court. She is seeking a jury trial for her action.

The Ovarian Cancer Lawsuit is Case No. 3:17-cv-05331 and is part of the Johnson & Johnson Ovarian Cancer MDL In re: Johnson & Johnson Talcum Powder Products Marketing, Sales Practices and Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2738 in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.

Ovarian Cancer Lawsuit Claims

Each ovarian cancer lawsuit in the multidistrict litigation against Johnson & Johnson alleges that the company knew decades ago that talc, the main ingredient in its Johnson’s Baby Powder and Shower to Shower products, has been associated with the development of ovarian cancer. Plaintiffs say the defendants knew about this association yet failed to warn the public.

The litigation states that research as early as the 1970s established a connection between genital talcum powder use and ovarian cancer, with dozens of later studies indicating the association.

Women used talcum powder in their perineal area to combat odor and wetness, and this application of the product was encouraged by Johnson & Johnson’s advertising, the women who filed these lawsuits state.

It is believed that the talc particles from the powder can enter the woman’s body and the talc particles can settle in the ovaries, causing inflammation and cancerous changes to occur.

The most recent report by the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation indicates that there are a total of 426 lawsuits in the federal MDL. This number does not include other lawsuits that have been filed in state court. More than 3,000 ovarian cancer lawsuit filings have taken place after women received their cancer diagnosis.

Several lawsuits in the multidistrict litigation have already gone to trial and their outcome has favored the plaintiffs. In particular, four of these ovarian cancer lawsuit actions brought forth against Johnson & Johnson have resulted in significant monetary outcomes.

These lawsuits have ended in monetary awards for the plaintiffs in the amount of $55 million, $70 million, $72 million and a staggering $110 million.

The women in these lawsuits are not simply seeking monetary compensation to cover the injuries they have sustained, but wish to hold Johnson & Johnson accountable for its alleged negligence in contributing to a preventable condition if proper warnings has been available.