Johnson & Johnson loses bid to overturn baby powder cancer case
pharmafile | June 24, 2020 | News story | Research and Development | Johnson and Johnson, talc, talc powder
Johnson & Johnson have had a bid to overturn a verdict that blamed the company’s baby powder for giving women ovarian cancer dismissed.
The Missouri appeals court found that the plantiffs had proven that J&J had concealed for decades that the company’s talc products contained asbestos and worked tirelessly to ensure this was not detected in testing and downplayed the safety hazards of the product. However, the damages they were originally ordered to pay were reduced from $4.69 billion to $2.12 billion.
The court released a statement saying: “Plaintiffs proved with convincing clarity that defendants engaged in outrageous conduct because of an evil motive or reckless indifference. There was significant reprehensibility in defendants’ conduct.”
J&J has faced more than 19,000 lawsuits claiming its talc products cause cancer, with the company’s internal records showing that these products sometimes tested positive for small traces of asbestos, which was exposed by a 2018 Reuters investigative report. The company also faced an investigation by a Congressional subcommittee.
The company released a statement on the recent court decision, with spokesperson Kim Montagnino saying: “We continue to believe this was a fundamentally flawed trial, grounded in a faulty presentation of the facts. We deeply sympathize with anyone suffering from cancer, which is why the facts are so important. We remain confident that our talc is safe, asbestos free, and does not cause cancer.”
However, despite the company saying it was confident its product was safe, it has stopped sales of baby powder across the US and Canada, although it is still available in markets across the world.
Conor Kavanagh
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