Case Allege Talcum Powder Can Lead to Ovarian Cancer

Kacy Hagerty: The company Johnson & Johnson is facing a number of lawsuits alleging that they fail to warn women about the risk of developing ovarian cancer when using one of their products. Attorney Carrie LaBrec with The Higgins Firm recently stopped by to tell us the very latest.

Carrie, it's great to have you on the show.

Carrie LaBrec: Thank you for having me.

Kacy Hagerty: So, tell us a little bit about these cases and what's going on here?

Carrie LaBrec: Well, we are reviewing cases on behalf of women who have developed ovarian cancer after using talcum or baby powder products. In 1971, there were some studies that were done that actually linked the tumors that developed in a women's ovaries to concentrate the forms of talc powder and then there were later studies done in 1982 that actually found that the women who used talcum-based powders and baby powder near their genital area were at a much higher chance of developing ovarian cancer.

There had been numerous lawsuits that have risen out of these – out of these claims and that's what we're here, you know, seeking to help all these women who've been affected by this today.

Kacy Hagerty: Right. It's so sad. So how many lawsuits been filed that you know of or any in your office?

Carrie LaBrec: Yes. There's – many lawsuits have been filed specifically against Johnson & Johnson which is, you know, one of the large companies that developed these products. The 1982 researchers actually recommended that these companies have warning labels, something to let women know the risk of developing ovarian cancer and they have failed to do that to this day…

Kacy Hagerty: Wow.

Carrie LaBrec: Back in 2013, there was a kind of a landmark case in which the woman, the plaintiff in the case, had been using these powders for 30 years near her genital area and developed ovarian cancer and the jury found that this was the cause of her ovarian cancer and that Johnson & Johnson knew of these risks since 1982 but failed to warn her and the public of these – of all these risks.

Kacy Hagerty: Goodness. So if someone watching suspects this could be happening to them or maybe they’ve developed cancer and think that that could be part of the reason, when should they call your office?

Carrie LaBrec: Well, I think that if they know that there is – that they have been having problems or they’ve developed ovarian cancer or some – even if it's just suspected that it might be related, they can call us anytime. We can go ahead and get information and see kind of where – where we are with their process. If they have any initial concerns about using these products and not really sure, you know, if they're at risk, they – best thing for them to do is talk to their doctor. But we are free anytime to talk to anybody who wants to give us a call.

Kacy Hagerty: Absolutely. Answer a lot of questions and walk them through the process, really helping out a lot of people out there, Carrie. Thank you so much for being here.

Carrie LaBrec: Thank you.

Kacy Hagerty: The Higgins Firm is serving Tennessee. Give them a call at 1-800-705-2121. Again, that number is right there on your screen. That's 1-800-705-2121. You can also visit their website, that's thehigginsfirm.com.