Baby Powder & Ovarian Cancer
- Experts say that there’s no conclusive evidence to support a link between baby powder and ovarian cancer
- Numerous lawsuits have been brought by women claiming that using talc-based baby powder caused them to develop ovarian cancer
- Some of the studies finding a link between elevated risk for ovarian cancer and baby powder are flawed because they asked women about the cause of their cancer, rather than forming a hard scientific link
“I can’t pull a paper that says, ‘yes, if you use baby powder for [a certain] number of years, your risk of ovarian cancer goes up by a certain percentage. Those studies just don’t exist today,” says Dr. David Engle, a gynecologic oncologist at Baptist Medical Group in Memphis, Tennessee.
Read MoreHowever, Dr. Engle points out that there’s a possible flaw in these studies specifically while ovarian cancer patients may remember products they’ve used in order to understand if something “caused” their cancer, the women who did not have cancer may not be able to. Therefore, Dr. Engle states that results from these studies could be affected.
“Those studies are very shaky in trying to determine a cause for ovarian cancer,” says Dr. Engle. “So far, no study has directly linked baby powder to ovarian cancer. So it’s possible that baby powder may cause ovarian cancer but it’s also possible there is no cause. We just don’t know yet.”
Is Talc Linked To Cancer Risk?
Due to these claims of ovarian cancer’s possible association with baby powder, numerous studies have been conducted to determine whether talc-based products actually increase the risk of cancer. A study from NIH's National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the National Cancer Institute notes that while there have been studies which show using talc products does slightly increase the risk of ovarian cancer (about 8%), the results rely heavily on a woman’s memory in detailing the products she’s used which is not always reliable.
Overall, the science linking the talc-based powder to cancer has not been fleshed out enough for experts to warn consumers about the product. However, in light of lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson, the company has decided to pull its talc-based baby powder from shelves in the U.S. and only sell existing inventory. Johnson & Johnson plans to cornstarch baby powder in place of their talc-based products.
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