Johnson & Johnson filed a motion to dismiss a baby powder cancer class action lawsuit in Illinois federal court last week, claiming the lead plaintiff did not demonstrate that she had suffered personal injury from using the talc powder.

Lead plaintiff Barbara Mihalich filed the baby powder class action lawsuit, alleging “everyone who bought Baby Powder should get their money back because of an alleged health risk …. [A]dult women who regularly used Johnson’s Baby Powder directly on their genital area for years — were exposed to a risk of ovarian cancer from the talc in the product.” However, Mihalich has not claimed that she has personally developed ovarian cancer because of her decades long use of the talc product.

According to Johnson & Johnson’s arguments to dismiss the baby powder cancer class action lawsuit, “Plaintiff’s entire Complaint should be dismissed because she has not suffered any cognizable ‘injury’ sufficient to satisfy either Article III or to state a claim under the CFA. ... Under the CFA, ‘it is not enough’ to simply claim that J&J ‘deceived the plaintiff[] and induced [her] to buy’ the product.’” The court has not yet made a decision on the motion.

In April, plaintiff Mona Estrada filed a similar baby powder lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson, which argues the company falsely advertised its product as safe and did not include warning labels about the potential risk of ovarian cancer risk among talc powder users .

The J&J Baby Powder Cancer Class Action Lawsuit is Mihalich v. Johnson & Johnson, et al., Case No. 3:14-cv-00600, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois.

History of Johnson Baby Powder Cancer

Since 1893, Johnson & Johnson has been manufacturing and selling its popular Johnson’s Baby Powder for use on infant and adult skin, and especially to mask odors from the genital area. According to Johnson Baby Powder advertisement, the company claims its product is “intended to eliminate friction on the skin and to absorb unwanted excess moisture for both babies and women,” and keep the applied area fresh and clean.

However, research dating back to 1960 demonstrated a strong link between use of talc products in the genital area and an increased consumer risk of ovarian cancer. A study published in 1971 showed evidence of how talc particles migrate from a woman’s genital area into the ovaries. The research demonstrated how out of 13 ovarian tumors, 10 of them had deeply embedded talc particles, which strengthened the hypothesis linking talc powder and ovarian cancer.

Since then, about two dozen additional research studies conducted in the U.S. and abroad have collected similar data and show increasing evidence and that talc powder use on a female consumer’s genital area significantly increases the risk of developing ovarian cancer.