J&J sues researchers who wrote talc powder linked to cancer

Talcum powder on black background — SewcreamStudio/iStock via Getty Images

A unit of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) formed to handle the tens of thousands of talc-related litigation against it has sued several researchers over a study published that linked talcum powder use to mesothelioma.

The lawsuit takes issue with a 2020 study published in the American Journal of Industrial Medicine by Theresa Emory, John Maddox, and Richard Kradin. The article was on a case study of 75 individuals with melanoma who say their only exposure to asbestos was through the use of cosmetic talc products.

LTL Management filed their case earlier this month in a federal court in New Jersey. They say that individuals in the study admitted other potential exposure to asbestos, and the authors knew or disregarded evidence regarding this.

“They publish their junk litigation opinions in scientific journals,” LTL says of the plaintiffs. “They use their credentials to instill their publications with false credibility. They then build from that fraudulent foundation by citing to each other’s work, which manufactures a ‘body of literature’ to present to judges and juries with the veneer of scientific legitimacy. And they actively resist attempts to make public the information that would reveal the deceit.”

In December 2022, LTL sued another researcher, Jacqueline Moline, who made similar claims in a paper she authored.