Johnson & Johnson ordered to pay $18.8million to cancer patient

On Tuesday, a jury ruled in favor of a man who allegedly developed cancer after constant use of Johnson & Johnson talc powder.

A California man went to court, claiming he contracted a dangerous type of cancer due to the use of Johnson & Johnson baby powder. On Tuesday, a jury ruled against Johnson & Johnson, which must now pay $18.8 million. This is a setback for the company as it works to resolve thousands of other cases involving its talc-based products in US bankruptcy court.

Emory Hernandez Valadez sought monetary compensation when he filed a lawsuit against J&J in Oakland, California, last year. Hernandez, 24, claims that heavy exposure to the company's talc starting in his early years led to the development of mesothelioma, a fatal cancer, in the tissue surrounding his heart. The six-week trial was the first talc-related case that J&J, based in New Jersey, had to deal with in almost two years.

Hernandez was found to be entitled to damages from the court to cover his medical costs and pain and suffering, but the jury decided not to punish the company with punitive damages. Hernandez won't be able to collect the judgment anytime soon because of a bankruptcy court order freezing the majority of J&J's talc litigation.

J&J will appeal the decision, according to Erik Haas, vice president of litigation at the company.

Hernandez was never proven to have been exposed to tainted talc, and J&J's attorneys claimed there was no proof linking Hernandez's particular type of mesothelioma to asbestos in their closing arguments to the jury on July 10. On the other hand, Hernandez's attorneys, in their closing arguments, charged J&J with covering up asbestos contamination for many years in a "despicable" manner.

Numerous lawsuits have been filed by plaintiffs who claim that J&J's baby powder and other talc products occasionally contained asbestos and contributed to the development of ovarian cancer and mesothelioma.