An aerospace engineer with over twenty years in the workforce retired due to multiple health complications that were allegedly caused by his regular exposure to silica and other powder metal toxins. He contracted cancer, Hepatitis B, and numerous other health complications. Concurrently, he alleged that his workplace had done little to mitigate to warn him of his exposure to the harmful materials, and decided to sue. An expert on the subject was needed to review medical records and determine whether there was causation between the engineer’s health decline and his exposure to toxic and carcinogenic materials.

I have been conducting independent medical evaluations, impairment assessments, and disability assessments in various states for over 30 years; I am a nationally recognized expert in this area. I am also an experienced consultant in occupational medicine, and I have extensive experience reviewing similar cases.

1. Please describe your professional experience with relation to the case at hand.

Experts in Materials Exposure Opine on Engineer’s Cancer

An expert in performing electronic microscopy was needed in a lawsuit against a baby powder manufacturing company when patients alleged the product had caused them to develop cancer. Throughout the case, scientific literature was conflicted on whether asbestos-free talc, a popular component in many cosmetic products, could act as a carcinogen. This dissent prompted the use of a tissue analyst to discuss whether talc could be seen in the pelvic cavity of patients.

I have taught, presented, and written on electron microscopy and have worked hands-on with the electron microscope in academic, industrial and forensic matters; identifying foreign particles in tissue is well within my expertise. Depending on the particle morphology, light microscopy may be used to identify particles. Electron microscopy in conjunction with X-ray spectroscopy would be preferred, since it has the advantage of imaging at high magnification with several different imaging modes that can be used to increase the kind of elemental contrast needed to see talc particles in tissue. Additionally, X-ray spectroscopy can provide quantitative elemental analysis of the particles to confirm their chemical makeup.

1. Are you able to identify particles in tissue? 2. What methods or tests would you use to identify particles of a substance like talc?

Class Action Alleges Baby Powder Facilitates Cancer

Following the death of a mother due to ovarian cancer, her family filed suit against the pharmaceutical company that had sold her the product without any attached warnings over talcum powder. Though the product was alleged to be free of carcinogenic asbestos since the 1970’s, the woman’s development of cancer after years of using talcum-based baby powder opposed assumptions that talc was now free of increasing cancer risk. In order to determine whether the company owed damages to the woman’s family, an expert in surgical pathology was required to observe tissue samples and causally connect talc exposure with ovarian cancer.

Since talc is composed magnesium and silicon, we would have to do some preliminary analysis on the powder while dry, in solution, and finally ‘in vivo,’ or in cell cultures and animal studies. At this time, I have never visualized these talc particles in the electron microscope, so these preliminary analyses would be necessary. The most likely method to detect these particles would be using X-ray energy dispersive spectroscopy, which we have available on both our scanning electron and transmission electron microscopes. However, this method has a lower limit of detection; we would be able to see the powders when dissolved or dry, but magnifying to see them once they are in cells or tissues would be more difficult. We have other, more sensitive methods, but localization of these particles will most likely be challenging regardless. A negative result would not necessarily mean that talc is not present, but rather that it may be present in another very specific area of tissue.

1. Please briefly describe your experience in identifying talc in tissue, and what tests or methods you would utilize to do so.

Lawsuit Alleges Baby Powder Talc is not Asbestos-Free

When multiple women began to develop weight loss, abdominal lumps, indigestion, and eventual ovarian cancer following the use of a multinational brand of baby powder, the product’s company was sued for neglecting to provide warnings about their products. During the trial, the connection between talcum-based baby powder and ovarian cancer was questioned, with allegations that the powder was directly responsible for the cancer’s development unconfirmed. Expert testimony on the causal relationships between the powder and cancerous growth was required, with a particular need for someone who could discuss the current literature in the debate over talc as a carcinogen.

As a professor of Radiology, Epidemiology, Obstetrics, and Gynecology, I have extensive knowledge about ovarian cancer, epidemiology, and biostatistics. I would need to review each patient’s medical records before applying relevant current literature and providing an informed opinion on causation in this case.

1. Are you familiar with the relationship between talc, asbestos, and ovarian cancer? 2. Are you able to develop an analysis of ovarian cancer risks in populations exposed to talc?

Epidemiology Expert Comments on Talcum-Cancer Correlation

After using baby powder for over three decades, a woman began to have a loss of appetite, abdominal pain, and bloating. Her doctor diagnosed her with cancer, and she began to suspect her routine use of baby powder of exposing her to carcinogenic talc, joining a large class action against the product’s manufacturer. The alleged presence of asbestos in the product was a contentious claim, as there was a lack of scientific consensus over the connection between talc and cancer at the time of the case. Faced with differing opinions and sentiments on the substance, experts in gynecologic oncology were called to testify on the ensuing scientific debate.

I'm an Associate Professor of Gynecologic Oncology at a major academic medical center and have about a decade of experience treating gynecologic malignancies, including ovarian cancer. I see around fifty patients a week, and about twenty percent of them have ovarian cancer. I'm very familiar with the relationship between talc and ovarian cancer and the controversy surrounding this issue, but have not officially reviewed any cases related to talcum powder yet.

1. Are you familiar with the relationship between talc and ovarian cancer?

Expert Contradicts Theory Linking Baby Powder and Cancer

An experienced epidemiologist was needed in a civil court case between a company that manufactures baby powder and past users who claimed that the product had given them cancer. The long-term health impact of the powder was brought into question by the case, which featured a woman who used the powder up to three times a day over the course of ten years. Allegedly, the ubiquitous integration of the product into her daily life had left her at risk to long-term exposure and marketing manipulation.

I do routinely evaluate health outcomes attributable to manufactured products and other environmental risks. I am quite familiar with the association between talc and ovarian cancer. I am well-equipped and experienced at developing and analysis of cancer risks in populations exposed to talcum powder products.

1. Do you routinely evaluate health outcomes associated manufactured product exposure? 2. Are you able to develop an analysis of cancer risks (specifically ovarian) in populations exposed to talc?

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Experts in Materials Exposure Opine on Engineer’s Cancer

Class Action Alleges Baby Powder Facilitates Cancer

Lawsuit Alleges Baby Powder Talc is not Asbestos-Free

Epidemiology Expert Comments on Talcum-Cancer Correlation

Expert Contradicts Theory Linking Baby Powder and Cancer

Class Action Claims Baby Powder has Carcinogenic Properties

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