<div><p>In a record-setting decision, <strong>a St. Louis jury has just awarded a Virginia woman $110.5 million US in the most recent lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson's baby powder. </strong></p><p>Lois Slemp <a href="https://www.shared.com/johnson-johnson-2068222113/">sued Johnson & Johnson</a> for millions based on the allegations that their baby powder product was the cause of her ovarian cancer. </p><p>Slemp, a long-time user of the product, was diagnosed in 2012 and she blames the company's talcum products for causing the disease. Since her diagnosis, the cancer has spread to her liver rendering her too ill to attend the trial.</p><div><figure><amp-img src="https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/05/art-jj.jpg" srcset="https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/05/art-jj_GH_content_550px.jpg 550w" sizes="89vw" title="" alt="" height="9" width="16" layout="responsive"></amp-img><figcaption class="op-vertical-center">Lois Slemp sued Johnson & Jonson and won after jurors determined the company's baby powder had caused her ovarian cancer.</figcaption></figure></div><p><!-- [invalid-shortcode] --></p><div><figure><amp-img src="https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/05/26de0e54590d501b9fccb40ada0adaae.png" srcset="https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/05/26de0e54590d501b9fccb40ada0adaae_GH_content_550px.png 550w, https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/05/26de0e54590d501b9fccb40ada0adaae_GH_content_650px.png 650w, https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/05/26de0e54590d501b9fccb40ada0adaae_GH_content_750px.png 750w" sizes="89vw" title="" alt="" height="9" width="16" layout="responsive"></amp-img></figure></div><p><strong>Slemp was a devoted consumer of Johnson's baby powder for over 40 years before her ovarian cancer diagnosis.</strong> The popular baby product contains Talc, a soft mineral that has been used in personal care products as early as 1894. </p><p>Besides its most common use of treating diaper rash, many women still use it as a product for feminine hygiene.</p><p><!-- [invalid-shortcode] --></p><p>Although research has only found a weak link between ovarian cancer and the use of baby powder for feminine hygiene, the <strong>International Agency for Research on Cancer classifies genital use of talc as "possibly carcinogenic."</strong></p><div><figure><amp-img src="https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/05/johnson-wikimedia-2.jpg" srcset="https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/05/johnson-wikimedia-2_GH_content_550px.jpg 550w, https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/05/johnson-wikimedia-2_GH_content_650px.jpg 650w, https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/05/johnson-wikimedia-2_GH_content_750px.jpg 750w, https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/05/johnson-wikimedia-2_GH_content_850px.jpg 850w, https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/05/johnson-wikimedia-2_GH_content_950px.jpg 950w" sizes="89vw" title="" alt="" height="9" width="16" layout="responsive"></amp-img><figcaption class="op-vertical-center"><cite>wikimedia</cite></figcaption></figure></div><p>Slemp's attorneys cited one study in particular that confirmed women who were regular users of talc on their genitals, face up to a 40 percent higher risk of developing ovarian cancer.</p><p><!-- [invalid-shortcode] --></p><p>Johnson & Johnson said in a statement that hat they would appeal the allegations, but the company is already facing about 2,000 state and federal lawsuits concerning the health problems dealing with long term use of talcum powder in their products.</p><p>[h/t <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/baby-powder-1.4101144">CBC</a>]</p><p></p></div>