A Connecticut woman recently filed a talcum powder cancer lawsuit against pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson, alleging use of the powder led to her ovarian cancer diagnosis.

Plaintiff Marilyn P. says she began using Johnson & Johnson talcum baby powder products as a young girl.

As part of her daily hygiene routine, she claims, she used baby powder in several places, including her under arms, neck area, chest, and genital area.

She alleges she continued to use baby powder products in this manner throughout her life. The plaintiff was born in 1945, and continued using this product until shortly after her cancer diagnosis in 2014.

Marilyn was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in the summer of 2014.

As a result, she underwent a number of medical procedures, including an exploratory laparotomy, bilateral salpingo-oopherectomy, abdominal hysterectomy, bilateral pelvic lymph node dissection, extensive retroperitoneal dissection, bilateral complete ureterolysis, and further cancer treatment.

Her talcum powder cancer lawsuit was filed on multiple counts including negligence, failure to warn, defective design, breach of express and implied warranties, intentional misrepresentation and fraud, concealment, and others.

Talcum Powder Cancer Background

Marilyn and other talcum powder lawsuit plaintiffs allege that Johnson & Johnson deceptively marketed its talcum powder as safe and effective for this kind of daily hygiene routine usage, despite evidence to the contrary.

Johnson & Johnson talcum baby powder is a product often used to prevent diaper rashes in young children, but the product is also used by adults. A large number of women regularly use these talcum baby powder products as part of their daily hygiene routine.

Baby powder can be based on two different formulations: cornstarch and talc. Of those two, plaintiffs claim, only talc has been linked with an increased risk of ovarian cancer. Indeed, use of talcum powder in the perineal area is a possible human carcinogen, according to the International Association for the Research of Cancer.

Allegations of a link between talc-based powders such as Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder and ovarian cancer have been cause for extreme concern among women who have used this product or others like it.

According to plaintiffs, studies have shown a substantial connection between talc-based baby powders and ovarian cancer, including evidence of talc found within some ovarian tumors.

Plaintiffs claim that this evidence should be cause for action. But they say 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.

Talcum Powder Cancer Lawsuits

Plaintiffs believe that companies that manufacture and market these baby powder products are responsible to provide adequate warnings of the risks involved in using their product.

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 talcum baby powder or a similar powder product containing talc and have since been diagnosed with ovarian cancer, you may be able to file a talcum powder cancer lawsuit.

Marilyn’s Talcum Powder Cancer Lawsuit is Case No. 3:16-cv-9229 in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, Middlesex County.