$39M Awarded in Talc Pleurodesis Mesothelioma Case

A jury awarded $39 million to a family in a lawsuit related to the use of talc in a medical procedure. Plaintiff Bryce Zundel was diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2021 and underwent the procedure at the center of the case in 2014.

Zundel’s lawsuit claimed the talc used in his pleurodesis was contaminated with asbestos. During a pleurodesis, medical-grade talcum powder is injected into the pleural space to prevent fluid or air buildup.

As attorney Danny Kraft with Meirowitz & Wasserberg explained to The Mesothelioma Center at Asbestos.com, “They covered his left pleural surface with talc, and that’s the exact location where he developed mesothelioma. This isn’t a coincidence.”

Kraft told us, “This is a scientific fact that this product contaminated with asbestos caused the disease.” Asbestos is the primary cause of mesothelioma.

Doctors perform pleurodesis to address and prevent pleural effusions in mesothelioma patients. The procedure is also used to treat pneumonia and recurring collapsed lungs. 

Zundel’s pleurodesis involved injecting sterile talc powder around his left lung. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved using talc in the procedure. 

Georgia-based talc supplier Cimbar Performance Minerals was the defendant in the case. The company imported the talc used in Zundel’s procedure from China.

Setting a Precedent for Other Pleurodesis Patients

Zundel’s case is the first lawsuit and verdict in a mesothelioma lawsuit stemming from  talc used during pleurodesis. With approximately 100,000 pleurodesis procedures performed in the U.S. per year and talc the most commonly used agent, many patients may face the risk of asbestos exposure. 

Kraft told us, “Patients like Bryce are sometimes missed. We didn’t want this case to be missed. We wanted his case to be living proof that when you inject asbestos into someone’s body, it causes this disease.”

He added, “Our hope is that nobody else has to suffer through the nightmare that Bryce and his family are living with. So that no one else ever receives this procedure, that no one else suffers this fate.”

Lawyers obtained a 5-gram sample of the talc used in Zundel’s procedure. A doctor tested the talc and found it was contaminated with tremolite and chrysotile asbestos. 

Kraft recounted, “We were able to show that this product contained asbestos. One of the interesting facts of this case is they imported millions of pounds of this stuff into the country. We were able to show the jury that the defendant knew asbestos was a carcinogen before they ever imported it.”

“One of the themes of our case was, if you know it’s a hazard, if you know it causes cancer, then you have to do more than just test a thimble full to ensure that this product is completely clean – particularly when you know it’s going to be used for a medical procedure,” Kraft commented. “And they didn’t do that.”

Challenges Overcome in This Groundbreaking Case

Mesothelioma cases usually involve plaintiffs who received a mesothelioma diagnosis decades after their initial exposure to asbestos. The latency period for mesothelioma, or the time between the initial exposure and the onset of symptoms, is 20 to 60 years. 

Zundel was diagnosed 7 years after his talc pleurodesis procedure. His short latency period posed a unique challenge.

“Everyone said this is an impossible case because of the short latency period,” Kraft shared with us. “Because it was the first lawsuit involving someone having talc pleurodesis develop into mesothelioma.”

As Kraft noted, “It wasn’t an inhalation case.” Most asbestos litigation involves occupational exposure or secondhand exposure involving inhalation of asbestos fibers on or brought home from job sites.Zundel’s medical exposure case raises awareness about other possible forms of asbestos exposure. Kraft hopes Zundel’s case will have a lasting impact on the medical community.