Ovarian cancer « Dr Alf's Blog



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In a very highly cited article, the LA Times reports that a terminally ill woman was awarded $417 million by a jury that found Johnson & Johnson liable for failing to warn her and other customers about the risks of its talcum products.

Source: L.A. jury hits Johnson & Johnson with $417-million verdict over cancer link to its talc – LA Times

The article highlights a 1982 study showing that women who used talc on their genitals were at a 92% increased risk for ovarian cancer – J&J it seems chose not to put a warning label on the product as recommended by the lead researcher. Critically, it argues that the jury panel found there was a connection between her ovarian cancer and the baby powder.

With thousands of other similar claims pending, J&J immediately announced that they were appealing.

J&J is an American multinational supplying medical devices, pharmaceutical and consumer packaged goods.

The story is now being widely picked up by the world’s media.

Since the financial crash of 2008, the value of J&J stock has doubled. It will be interesting to see how financial analysts rate J&J’s chances against the pending litigation.

Thoughts?

1938 poster identifying surgery, x-rays and radium as the proper treatments for cancer. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

According to the UK Telegraph, common drugs for breast, bowel, prostate, pancreatic and blood cancer will no longer be funded by the NHS following sweeping cutbacks.

Source: Thousands of cancer patients to be denied treatment –

This is a deeply worrying story showing the impact of austerity and ineffective reform measures at the NHS, the UK’s public health system.

Once upon a time, the NHS was the gold-standard for public healthcare but in recent decades, the UK’s healthcare performance has fallen behind most advanced countries, based upon international benchmarks. Sadly, it is in cancer treatment that the UK record is probably worst.

Surely, it is increasingly obvious that the UK needs to scrap the NHS and replace it with a public healthcare system based upon the world’s best practice?

Thoughts?