Roundup Lawsuit Filed By Farmer, Landscaper After Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma Diagnoses

A farmer and a landscaper have filed a joint lawsuit against Monsanto, alleging that the global agricultural chemical company failed to provide adequate warnings about the link between non-Hodkins Lymphoma and Roundup, a weedkiller that both plaintiffs indicate they used for years before being diagnosed with the cancer.

The complaint (PDF) was filed last week by John Sanders and Frank Tanner, both of California, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

Sanders and Tanner each indicate that they were diagnosed with non-Hodkins lymphoma as a result of the side effects of Roundup exposure, which is one of the most widely used weedkillers and herbicides in the United States.

The active ingredient in Roundup, glyphosate, has been identified by the World Health Organization (WHO)’s International Agency for Research on Cancer as a potential human carcinogen, and the product has been linked to reports of non-Hodkins lymphoma among farm workers, landscapers and others in the agricultural industry who were heavily exposed to the chemical.

Sanders, 67, was a ranch hand for an orchard company from 1983 to 1985 before running his own farm for another 20 years. The complaint indicates that he used Roundup to control weeds in orange and grapefruit groves in Redlands, California from 1983 to 2015. Due to a lack of warnings about the potential link between Roundup and cancer, Sanders states that he never wore protective gear, indicating that he relied on Monsanto’s representations that Roundup was safe.

In 1998 he was diagnosed with esophageal cancer and had part of his esophagus removed. While that cancer went into remission, in May 2014, Sanders was diagnosed with low-grade B-cell lymphoma, which is also currently in remission. However, he was forced to retire after his battle with cancer.

Tanner, 84, used Roundup from 1974 through 2000 as part of his landscaping business. He also used it from 2000 through 2006 to control weeds for the Los Angeles County Sanitation District as part of a maintenance contract.

While Tanner indicates that he wore a protective suit, rubber gloves and boots, and a helmet with a plastic face shield, he states that did not use a face mask because he too believed Roundup itself was not harmful to his health, according to the lawsuit.

Following years of Roundup exposure, Tanner was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma (NHL( in 2005, underwent radiation and chemotherapy treatment, and used Roundup for personal purposes after selling his business in 2006. He was then diagnosed with skin lymphoma in 2012; another type of NHL.

Following several radiation treatments, Tanner’s cancer is now in remission. However, he indicates that he continued to use Roundup for gardening and weed killing purposes throughout his treatment, until the cancer warnings were issued by IARC last year.

The case joins a growing number of Roundup lawsuits filed by other farmers, landscapers and agricultural workers over the past year, each involving similar allegations that the manufacturer placed their desire for profits before human safety by withholding information about the health risks.

Sanders, Tanner, and other plaintiffs claim that Monsanto has known for years that glyphosate poses an increased risk of cancer, yet withheld information from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and failed to recommend consumers take adequate safety precautions when using the product to control the growth of weeds.

As Roundup injury lawyers continue to review and file cases for individuals throughout the U.S. who have been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma or other forms of cancer, it is ultimately expected that Monsanto will face several thousand complaints in courts throughout the U.S.