Johnson And Johnson Handed $417 Million Verdict In Lawsuit That Linked Talc Product To Cancer.
A jury in Los Angeles, California, issued a $417 million verdict against Johnson and Johnson, in what could be the first of many cases linking their baby powder product to Ovarian Cancer.
Eva Echeverria, 63, started using Johnson and Johnson’s talc baby powder when she was 11, and did not stop using it when she was diagnosed with cancer in 2007. Echeverria was not aware of not studies that had linked the product to cancer, and only stopped using it after hearing of other lawsuits that held Johnson and Johnson’s power for the plaintiff’s cancer.
“She told me, ‘I’m not doing this for myself,’” said Mr. Robinson, Echeverria’s lawyer. “She knows she’s going to die. She’s doing this for other women. She wants to do something good before she leaves.”
The verdict marks the largest settlement to date in a great number of lawsuits alleging that the company’s powder causes ovarian cancer. There are more than 300 cases pending in California, in addition to more than 4,500 claims across the nation, all accusing Johnson and Johnson of ignoring studies that linked their baby powder product to its cancerous effects.
The company, which earned a profit of $16.5 billion last year, will appeal the verdict, claiming that their studies did not present sufficient evidence of linkage between powder usage and ovarian cancer. Among these studies, Johnson and Johnson cited one in particular, conducted at Harvard University, that showed less than .5% of women using their product developing Ovarian Cancer. In contrast, the lawsuit referred to a study that linking women who used talc on their genitals to a 92% increase in their risk for ovarian cancer.
Eva Echeverria was never warned about the potential risks when using this product. Companies that fail to provide labels with proper warnings can be found liable in court and issued with enormous verdicts for the damages done. When suffering personal injury or a disease because of a pharmaceutical company’s negligence, legal action must be taken.
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