A trial underway in St. Louis, Missouri, is exploring allegations from a woman who claims that Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder caused her to develop ovarian cancer.

In addition to Johnson & Johnson, the plaintiff also named talc supplier Imerys Talc America in the baby powder cancer lawsuit.

Plaintiff Gloria R. claims in her baby powder lawsuitthat she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2011 and subsequently underwent a hysterectomy to treat the cancer. Gloria claims that she used Johnson’s Baby Powder in her genital area for decades before the cancer was diagnosed.

In her baby powder cancer lawsuit, Gloria alleges that the talcum powder in the product caused her to develop ovarian cancer.

The attorney for Gloria told jurors that Johnson & Johnson “put a corporate philosophy of profit over the safety of their customers for nearly the entire exposure period of Ms. [R.] to Johnson & Johnson baby powder.”

Johnson & Johnson knew of peer-reviewed studies that established a link between talcum powder use and ovarian cancer for decades, the attorney stated. Despite this, the company continued to sell the talc-based product rather than use a safer alternative by switching to a cornstarch-based powder product like other manufacturers, argued Gloria’s attorney.

The baby powder lawsuit claims that J&J has internal documents showing the company launched a “defense strategy” to halt government regulation of talc. “They used language like ‘A battle we cannot afford to lose,’” Gloria’s attorney contended. He told the jury that the company had also spearheaded a task force aimed at preventing the government’s regulation of talc.

The lawsuit also alleges that J&J ignored government requests to remove talc from its products and warn consumers. Not only did J&J ignore the government, the attorney argued, the company also began ignoring its talc supplier, Imerys, after Imerys began including warnings about talc use in the genital area with its shipments to J&J in 2006.

“Despite [those warnings], Johnson & Johnson, to this day evidence will show, has not warned the consuming public,” the plaintiff’s lawyer informed jurors.

Johnson & Johsnon’s lawyers shot back saying the baby powder cancer link based was based on studies that were inconclusive.

One lawyer said, “We’re here because Ms. [R] claims that baby powder, a product that’s been on the market and used for 125 years by our mothers, our grandmothers and all our babies caused [her] ovarian cancer. Nobody knows what causes ovarian cancer.”

J&J’s lawyer went on to say that the Imerys warning in 2006 was prompted by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) calling talc “possibly carcinogenic,” but “That classification includes things like coffee [and] pickled vegetables. Things that don’t carry any waring and have not been shown to cause [cancer].”

“Johnson & Johnson did not warn because it did not believe then, or now, that talc used in the genital area cause[s] ovarian cancer,” J&J’s lawyer asserted.

The lawyer for Imerys stated that medial evidence will prove that Gloria’s cancer was not caused by talc. That lawyer claimed “Talc wasn’t actually in her [ovarian] tissue,” and “We’ve got someone who will come in [to testify] who treats women day-in and day-out. And you won’t hear a doctor like that for the plaintiff.”

This is the second baby powder cancer lawsuit that gas gone to trial in Missouri state court. Thousands more lawsuits similarly allege that talcum powder in Johnson’s Baby Powder has caused women to develop ovarian cancer. The first trial in the series ended with a $72 million verdict against the baby powder manufacturer.

The trial is set to last approximately two weeks, ending late April or early May.

The Baby Powder Cancer Lawsuit is Gloria R. v. Johnson & Johnson, Case No. 1422-CC09012-01, in the Circuit Court of the City of St. Louis, State of Missouri.