Johnson and Johnson loses another Baby Powder Ovarian Cancer Lawsuit

In a recent Ovarian Cancer Lawsuit, Johnson and Johnson loses and is expected pay $417 million in damages to a California woman who claims she developed ovarian cancer after using Johnson’s Baby Powder for the majority of her life, a jury ordered Monday.

This is the largest payout for a case related to ovarian cancer and talcum powder so far.

Eva Echeverria, 63, from East Los Angeles, used the powder as a feminine hygiene product for decades. Too sick to appear in court, she was awarded $70 million in compensatory damages and $357 in punitive damages, totaling $417.

“Ovarian cancer is a devastating diagnosis and we deeply sympathize with the women and families impacted by this disease,” Carol Goodrich, spokeswoman for Johnson & Johnson, told the Daily News in a statement.. But she added, “We will appeal today’s verdict because we are guided by the science, which supports the safety of Johnson’s Baby Powder.”

There are about 4,800 similar claims nationally, including four lawsuits in Missouri where Johnson & Johnson dished out more than $300 million total in damages. The largest payout in those cases was $110 million. The plaintiff in one of those cases, who was awarded $72 million in damages, died before the payout.

The issue of whether talcum powder directly causes ovarian cancer is hotly debated. Talc is a naturally occurring clay mineral composed of magnesium, silicon, oxygen, and hydrogen. It is closely associated with asbestos — the two are found in the same places — but stricter quality control has meant that there has been no asbestos in talcum powder products since the 1970s.

The National Cancer Institute has stated that there isn’t enough evidence to support a direct relationship between asbestos-free talc and ovarian cancer, citing a study by the Women’s Health Initiative in which only .7% of the women using talcum powder developed ovarian cancer.

The American Cancer Society says that, “If there is an increased risk, the overall increase is likely to be very small.” Meanwhile, The International Agency for Research on Cancer has said that talcum powder is “possibly carcinogenic to humans.”