Medical News
US state launches action
over ‘carcinogenic’
Johnson & Johnson
baby powder
New Mexico joins tens of thousands of personal litigants suing the
company
A
regular defendant in lawsuits alleging its
baby powder is contaminated with asbestos,
Johnson & Johnson is well-accustomed to
defending itself against individuals suffering from
mesothelioma, a type of cancer that can develop in
the body’s internal organs.
In the latest action against the personal care
multinational, a local state government for the
first time is suing the company for “misleading
consumers.”
The suit, initiated by New Mexico’s attorney
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MARCH 2020
general, alleges that the company deceived children
and black and Hispanic women regarding the safety of
its talcum-based powder.
Johnson & Johnson faces more than 16,800 other
legal challenges and is under investigation by the
Securities and Exchange Commission, America’s
financial watchdog, and the Department of Justice.
The company denies the allegations, saying it
“will continue to defend the safety of Johnson’s
Baby Powder, which is supported by decades of
scientific evidence showing our talc is safe and free of
asbestos.” It has set aside US$90 million to challenge
the allegations.
Last October, Johnson & Johnson recalled 33,000
bottles of the powder after the Food and Drug
Administration said it had found trace amounts of
chrysotile asbestos in one of them. The manufacturer
later claimed to have tested the same container,
finding no sign of the material.
It is currently waiting for a federal judge to approve
or reject the science underpinning thousands of the
lawsuits. This decision could determine whether the
cases can be presented to juries.
Mesothelioma is an aggressive cancer that forms
in the thin linings around specific cavities or organs.
Pleural mesothelioma forms in the membrane that
separates the lung cavity and chest wall, while
peritoneal mesothelioma originates in the lining around
the abdominal cavity.
Formerly a common building material, asbestos can
easily fragment and mix with other minerals that are
found near to it, including talcum, which is used for
baby powder, makeup, and other health and beauty
products.
Those fibres can pierce through the body’s
sensitive cellular linings and cause mutation. Experts
believe this process is how Johnson & Johnson’s
baby powder can allegedly cause mesothelioma. The
cancer usually develops between 20 and 50 years
after exposure.
A Reuters report from 2018 suggests the company
knew of asbestos contamination in its baby powder
products for many years. New Mexico’s lawsuit claims
the same. According to New Mexico attorney general
Hector Balderas, Johnson & Johnson “concealed
and failed to warn consumers about the dangers
associated with their talc products.”
Recently, the company settled a case against a
woman who alleged its baby powder caused her
mesothelioma. This was an unusual move by Johnson
& Johnson mid-trial with so many thousands of
lawsuits hanging over it.
This followed a big win in December, when jurors
rejected a woman’s claim that her ovarian cancer was
tied to the use of its talc in St Louis. A court in the
city had delivered a verdict against it in 2018, when it
awarded US$4.7 billion to more than 20 women who
blamed their cancers on its baby powder.
GlobalHealthAndTravel.com