Mesothelioma Lawsuit Over Asbestos in Medical Talc Leads to $39M Verdict

Jury determined that contaminated talc was injected directly into the plaintiff’s chest cavity during a pleurodesis procedure, leading to a mesothelioma diagnosis.

A $39 million verdict has been awarded in a mesothelioma lawsuit brought by a man who developed the deadly disease due to the presence of asbestos in medical talc powder, which was supposedly sterile and injected directly into his chest during a medical procedure.

Pleurodesis is a medical procedure where the pleural space in the chest cavity is drained of fluid or air, often by filling the space with a chemical irritant. It is used to treat recurring pleural effusions or pneumothorax.

However, a lawsuit filed by Bryce Zundel claimed that doctors used talcum powder supplied by Cimbar Performance Minerals during a 2014 operation, which allegedly contained asbestos fibers, resulting in his mesothelioma diagnosis seven years later.

Mesothelioma is a rare and deadly type of cancer, which is only known to be caused by exposure to asbestos. There is no known cure for the cancer, and it is usually not diagnosed until decades after asbestos exposure. As a result, it is often already at an advanced stage by the time it is detected, leading to a very short life expectancy after diagnosis.

On September 13, a Boston jury awarded Zundel, and his wife Diane, $39 million in a talcum powder cancer lawsuit against Cimbar, including $21.5 million for Zundel’s anticipated future pain and suffering in dealing with the incurable disease.

There are an estimated 100,000 pleurodesis procedures conducted in the U.S. each year, and this is the first lawsuit to go before a jury linking it to mesothelioma and asbestos exposure, according to a press release issued by Zundel’s attorneys on September 18.

Over the past few decades, mesothelioma lawsuits have become the longest-running mass tort litigation in U.S. history, with more than 600,000 people having filed a lawsuit against more than 6,000 defendants after being diagnosed with mesothelioma or another asbestos-related injury caused by inhaling the fibers.

Talcum Powder Cancer Litigation

Most mesothelioma lawsuits involve asbestos fibers being inhaled due to occupational risks or secondhand exposure. However, there are also tens of thousands of talcum powder cancer lawsuits currently pending against Johnson & Johnson, over the alleged presence of asbestos in its Baby Powder and Shower-to-Shower products.

The majority of those cases focus on the use of talcum powder on women’s genitals, which plaintiffs say resulted in ovarian cancer. However, Johnson & Johnson has also faced numerous mesothelioma talc powder lawsuits, alleging that the cancer was caused by breathing asbestos fibers that contaminated the talc ingredients used in the products. However the company says it has settled, or otherwise resolved, 95% of those claims.