Ovarian Cancer and Talc

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Ovarian cancer is uncomfortable to talk about, but a reality of modern day life. Yes, it does happen, but when it occurs as a result of the uncaring conduct of a manufacturer, camouflaged by the seemingly innocent conduct of daily hygiene, it is even more upsetting.

If you, or someone you love had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer, there are questions that need to be asked to determine if either of you has been unnecessarily victimized by a preventable and avoidable cause.

You would want to know from the doctor certain things about the cancer to determine if it is the type known to be caused by pro-longed talc use. That information is known and knowable. If you or your loved one have been a pro-longed TALC user for at least four years, you may be one who has been its victim.

Genetic testing has known results that would tell whether or not you or your loved one are genetically susceptible to the disease.  If you do not have this specific genetic susceptibility, that might be another element of proof, connecting the ovarian cancer to the pro-longed use of talc. In addition, it would be important to know whether or not the diagnosis of ovarian cancer was at a certain age or younger.

There are attorneys who have made themselves familiar with the relationship of talc to ovarian cancer and will know the questions that need answering in order to determine if the connection between the talc and the ovarian cancer can be established and proven.

You should know that talc has been found to be carcinogenic. How often and how it is used can create a very real risk to a seemingly simple daily attempt at hygiene. One company is believed to produce an overwhelmingly major portion of the talc sold in the United States. When it was sold to that company, it had an MSDS warning affixed to the plastic packaging bags, warning that certain exposure can cause ovarian and lung cancer.

The path to victimization started when the company selling it, removed the talc from it’s original plastic bags containing the cancer warnings, added fragrance, put it in the plastic container and marketed it under its brand names.

Regrettably, with long-term use, typically for feminine care and personal hygiene, the fibers in the talc make there way up into the ovaries and have been shown to cause ovarian cancer.  It has also been shown that once cancerous ovaries are removed, talc fibers can be seen on the pathology specimens.  However, when the pathology slides are interpreted for the diagnosis for cancer, the pathologist reviewing them to make the diagnosis would not normally be looking for the talc fibers. If the pathology slides were positive for ovarian cancer, then the tissue block used for the slides would probably need further testing to confirm that they are, in fact, talc fibers.

If you want to see whether or not this product has victimized someone, whether or not that person has had a talc use history of at least 4 years would be significant.  It has been shown that those that have used talc only a few times, are less likely to have a provable claim against the manufacturer or distributor.

There are multiple medical studies confirming the connection between the pro-longed use of talc and ovarian cancer.  The American Cancer Society has indicated that there is a 30 to 40% increased risk of ovarian cancer associated with or connected to regular talc use. By way of example, tampon manufacturers removed talc from their products some years ago, due to the increased risk of ovarian cancer.

If you have been unfortunate to have been diagnosed with cancer, you may want to seek a medical malpractice attorney to see if the likely cause, is other than genetic or from some other reason. There are several factors that should be discussed with an attorney you trust, who is familiar with the problem and the connections between talc and ovarian cancer, to see if your family has a sound basis to seek compensation from the manufacturer of the talc.

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