Monsanto Roundup Cancer litigation continues to grow with recent actions filed in Alabama, Oklahoma, and Georgia adding to the over 800 lawsuits already filed nationwide.
The litigation against Monsanto began after a March 2016 World Health Organization declaration that there was sufficient evidence to classify the weed killer glyphosate – better known by its commercial name Roundup – as “probably carcinogenic to humans. More recently, on June, 7 2017, glyphosate was added to California’s list of chemicals that can cause cancer. The state keeps a list of carcinogenic chemicals because of a law commonly called Proposition 65, which “requires businesses to provide warnings to Californians about significant exposures to chemicals that cause cancer, birth defects or other reproductive harm.”
This raised consciousness of the dangers of glyphosate exposure has caused many patients with non-Hodgkins lymphoma to re-examine their previous contact with Roundup. It is not a trivial concern. The WHO has concluded that scientific research indicates glyphosate is a “probable” carcinogen in humans. Their International Agency for Research on Cancer, is considered the gold standard for cancer research. In 50 years, not a single “probable” human carcinogen it has identified has been shown later to not cause cancer.
Monsanto has predictably denied the dangers of glyphosate. They insist that Roundup creates no risks to human health or to the environment, and have even categorized the weed killer as being “safer than table salt” and “practically non-toxic.” However it was revealed in a mass litigation in federal court claims that Monsanto’s toxicology manager ghostwrote parts of a scientific report in 2013 that was published under the names of several academic scientists, and his boss ghostwrote parts of another in 2000. Those same studies have been integral to Monsanto’s insistence to the EPA and the public that glyphosate is perfectly safe to humans and denying any claims linking it to cancer.
Roundup is the single most widely used weed killer in the world and permeates even the most remote corners of our food chain. Only last week, it was announced that small traces of glyphosate had been found in samples of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream. The company, known for it’s environmental advocacy, is struggling to find how glyphosate infiltrated their supply chain and even suspects the source might not be in their direct supply chain.
Glyphosate has also been found in other well-known food brands and those manufacturers are similarly puzzled to how appeared. The most logical explanation is that like it or not, Roundup is used commercially in almost every step of the food chain. Consumer and environmental groups have been left responsible in testing for glyphosate in food, because, while the government routinely tests foods for a variety of pesticides, it does not regularly test for glyphosate. Consider for a moment, that in 2011 the Agriculture Department conducted a special test of 300 soybean samples for glyphosate and found the herbicide in 271 of them. Soy is one of the largest commodities in the food chain, and is an ingredient in many of the foods we consume each day.
But those most at risk from glyphosate exposure are people who work with Roundup every day. Farmers, agricultural workers, landscape workers, and sports maintenance workers, just to name a few, spend their careers regularly using and being exposed to the weed killer. The plaintiffs in many of the current Monsanto Roundup cancer cases often represent these professions. The safety standards used by these victims for glyphosate are based on studies from the 1980s, when use of glyphosate-based herbicides (GBHs) was a fraction of what it is today. It’s time to reassess glyphosate safety standards in spite of Monsanto’s insistence of Roundup’s safety.
While there is direct evidence linking glyphosate to non-Hodgkin lymphoma, Monsanto continues to proclaim the Roundup is harmless. There is no doubt the almost $5 billion in revenue the company made from the weed killer clouds Monsanto’s judgment. They continue to actively attempt to suppress any evidence that might harm sales – or reveal they knowingly sell a dangerous product
At Saunders & Walker we continue to represent consumers harmed by defective products and medical devices. If you feel you or a loved one might have developed cancer or other medical conditions after repeated exposure to Roundup, please call us for a free consultation.