'Why I blame Johnson and Johnson baby talc for cancer that robbed me of my voice'

Cassandra Wardle says her mum utilized talcum pulverization connected her each time erstwhile she was a babe - present she is 1 of thousands of British women who blasted the merchandise for causing their cancer.

Mrs Wardle is portion of a 2,000-strong UK radical represented by lawyers who assertion planetary pharmaceutical elephantine Johnson & Johnson "knew for decades" determination was allegedly asbestos successful its talc. But J&J insists its babe merchandise was harmless and stressed it "takes the contented of talc information incredibly seriously".

If the enactment goes up it is understood to beryllium the archetypal of its benignant against the US-based multi-national corp successful the UK. Claimants see crab patients, survivors, bereaved families and besides immoderate men.

Mrs Wardle was conscionable 44 erstwhile she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer aft visiting her GP astir accrued menstrual bleeding successful 2022. She told the Mirror she believes Johnson and Johnson enactment nett implicit people's health.

The businesswoman, present 47, says she has mislaid her health, the beingness she had, the accidental to person children, her concern and present her voice.

As a 70s baby, Mrs Wardle's mum utilized talcum pulverization connected her each day, a ritual she continued good into her 20s.

Mrs Wardle, from Alfreton, Derbyshire, said: “It’s conscionable what radical did. Johnson and Johnson talcum pulverization was successful each location and was a trusted brand. I americium grateful to inactive beryllium here, but I americium besides incredibly angry."

“I privation to cognize wherefore Johnson and Johnson didn’t alteration the ingredients of the talcum pulverization erstwhile they knew that it was dangerous. Why did they transportation connected selling it, putting truthful galore thousands of lives astatine risk? What they person done is thing abbreviated of despicable.”

Following her crab diagnosis Mrs Wardle underwent a challenging seven-hour cognition with aggregate surgeons, starring to her receiving an archetypal diagnosis, Stage 1c. But aft completing chemotherapy, she was told the crab had dispersed passim her lungs and thorax and was told she lone had months to live.

After suffering horrific broadside effects, she opted retired of further chemotherapy to prosecute aesculapian trials, aboriginal investigating produced a much affirmative prognosis and she completed her attraction 2 years agone successful August.

She had repeated bouts of tonsillitis for much than 9 months, aft her immune strategy was depleted during chemotherapy, and present cannot speak. She had to susurration each connection to our newsman to get her dependable across.

Mrs Wardle told the Mirror she believed J&J were much acrophobic astir wealth than customers, saying: "They are a elephantine powerhouse and it troubles maine that it was nett earlier people, that's however it feels to maine arsenic idiosyncratic who surviving and breathing with crab and inactive does each day.

"My husband, Phil, and parents person go my carers, it's not conscionable the idiosyncratic with crab it affects it is the full household and friends who suffer, each portion of my beingness has been affected."

Tom Longstaff, the lawyer starring the UK lawsuit and a spouse astatine KP Law, which has already been contacted by 4,000 imaginable claimants and represents astir 2,000 presently with respect to claims against J&J relating to talcum powder, said the substance would beryllium yet different illustration of a ‘trusted’ corp putting profits earlier user safety, with tragic consequences.

“All of the claimants, predominantly women but besides immoderate men, who person sustained crab aft utilizing J&J’s talcum pulverization products person experienced a life-changing illness. In immoderate cases, they person died from their cancer, leaving their families devastated. All of these guiltless individuals merit justice.

“There are thousands of women successful the UK who volition person been diagnosed with cancers which person been identified arsenic being linked to the usage of talcum pulverization and whitethorn good person a lawsuit against J&J, on with a smaller proportionality of men with respect to mesothelioma and peritoneal cancer.

“This once-trusted corp knew for decades that the asbestos successful its talc products was present, that it was dangerous, but did thing to notify consumers of the risk, who person ended up paying the highest terms imaginable for the involvement of firm greed. We are committed to helping arsenic galore radical arsenic imaginable execute justness successful the UK for the actions of profit-hungry executives successful US boardrooms.”

Talc is simply a mineral that is sometimes utilized successful talcum powders and different cosmetic products, according to Cancer Research UK.

Sophia Lowes, from the charity, said: "[Talc] tin beryllium mined successful places wherever determination is asbestos, which tin origin the talc to go contaminated. Asbestos is known to origin mesothelioma and cancers of the lung, larynx and ovary.

"The merchantability of products containing asbestos is banned successful the UK and cosmetic products request to beryllium safety-tested earlier they tin beryllium sold."

J&J has antecedently said that "any proposition that Johnson & Johnson knew oregon hid accusation astir the information of talc is false".

The institution discontinued mineral-based talc successful North America successful 2020 - and followed suit successful the UK successful 2023 - replacing it with cornstarch.

KP Law is starring the British case, representing astir 2,000 people. The ineligible experts assertion J&J knew arsenic aboriginal arsenic the 1970s that asbestos successful its talc products was unsafe but failed to pass consumers and carried connected producing and selling the products successful the UK until arsenic precocious arsenic 2022.

KP Law has present issued a missive earlier enactment connected behalf of its clients, and J&J person until the extremity of the twelvemonth to respond, pursuing which documents volition beryllium filed successful the High Court.

The planetary elephantine has already acceptable speech much than $6bn to settee ovarian crab cases successful the US with a further magnitude of much than $4bn for radical diagnosed with mesothelioma.

A J&J spokesperson said the institution has won the "vast majority" of trials successful the US oregon won cases connected appeal.

A connection from Johnson & Johnson Ltd added: “Lawsuits successful the US person unluckily created unfounded disorder and unnecessary fearfulness astir an constituent that has been utilized safely successful foods, cosmetic products, pharmaceuticals, and a big of user products for decades.

We sympathise profoundly with patients who are suffering from crab and their families. However, the subject and the facts amusement that their illnesses were not caused by the usage of our talc-based products.

"We basal down the information of talc-based Johnson's Baby Powder arsenic decades of investigating by experts astatine starring institutions utilizing the astir state-of-the-art investigating protocols demonstrates that the merchandise is safe, does not incorporate asbestos, and does not origin cancer.”