Can talcum powder really cause cancer?
Johnson & Johnson has long marketed the talc-based powders as feminine hygiene products, and Baby Powder is widely available in the UK CREDIT: ALAMY
Using powders in the female genital area can cause non-cancerous infections CREDIT:ALAMY
24 FEBRUARY 2016Pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson has been ordered to pay £51 million to the family of a woman who died from ovarian cancer.
Before her death, Jackie Fox claimed her illness had been caused by the company’s Baby Powder and Shower to Shower products, which she used for feminine hygiene purposes.
This week, a jury in Missouri decided her account was true and the court ordered the pay out. Johnson & Johnson is expected to appeal but the case is one of 1,200 lawsuits currently being brought against the company from American customers, who claim they were not told about the risks.
It raises one important question: can talcum powder actually cause cancer?
This is something experts are divided on – and the matter is made more complex by the fact that there are several different types of talcum powder.
Back when it first came about, the powder, generally contained talc – a mineral made of magnesium, silicon and oxygen – in its natural form.
Then, some of that talc was found to contain asbestos - a substance known to cause cancers in and around the lungs when inhaled.
When it was proven in the 1970s, all manufacturers stopped using this kind of talc. Instead they swapped to corn starch, which is currently used by most US companies and has never been linked to cancer in any way – or asbestos-free talc.
This is the kind of product that is present in J&J’s Baby Powder and is also used in most British versions of talcum powder.
This is the kind of product that is present in J&J’s Baby Powder and is also used in most British versions of talcum powder.
