The product is normally referred to as baby powder but it is also sold by Johnson & Johnson under the name Shower to Shower as part of its body powder products. The lawsuits allege that regular application of the product to the genital region increases the risk of cancer.

One out of 70 women are diagnosed with this form of cancer and around 14,000 die annually from it. It is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related deaths among women.

Some researchers estimate that there may be as many as 2,100 cases of the diagnosed ovarian cancer annually in the U.S. causally linked to talcum powder use. Studies suggesting a link between talc use and ovarian cancer date back to the 1980s with research starting in the 1970s on this issue. They estimate that the risk of ovarian cancer through regular talcum powder use increases by about 35 percent.