Chemical Hair Straightener Cancer: 6 Ways a Lawsuit Can Help You in 2024

Legally Reviewed and Edited by: Terry Cochran

If you routinely use chemical hair straighteners, it can impact your health and well-being. A 2022 study found that using hair straighteners and relaxers can increase the risk of uterine cancer, and a 2024 study found that heavy usage of some beauty products, including relaxers, may also be associated with an increased risk of breast cancer.

When a product that’s supposed to be safe causes you harm, you have the right to hold the manufacturer liable for your damages. Filing a chemical hair straightener lawsuit can help you seek financial support for medical costs, lost wages, and the pain and suffering you’ve gone through because of a hair straightener’s effect on your health.

If you were diagnosed with uterine cancer or breast cancer after using straighteners or relaxers, our product liability attorneys at Cochran, Kroll & Associates, P.C., can help. We’ll work with you to initiate a chemical hair straightener lawsuit, helping you seek a settlement for your losses.

Dangers of Chemical Hair Straighteners

Hair straightening products may contain hazardous chemicals, many of which are toxic and increase the risk of developing cancer. The main chemicals linking hair straighteners and relaxers with cancer risks include:

• Formaldehyde. Formaldehyde is a concern in certain hair straightening products. It can be present or released when heat is applied during styling. Known for its strong odor and potential health risks, formaldehyde exposure can increase the risk of cancer, causing symptoms like eye irritation, coughing, and skin rashes right after exposure.
  The FDA advises checking hair products for ingredients like formalin and methylene glycol, which are related to formaldehyde, to avoid these risks.
• Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs). Many hair straighteners contain substances that can disrupt your hormonal balance called endocrine disrupting chemicals. These chemicals, including phthalates, parabens, and bisphenol A (BPA), are often used to boost product performance, making hair easier to style.
  They can have serious side effects by interfering with hormone production, leading to increased risks of hormonal cancers such as breast and ovarian cancer. BPA is particularly concerning as it can also damage DNA, which may contribute to cancer development.

When You May Have Legal Grounds for a Lawsuit

If you suspect that your cancer developed due to using hair straighteners and relaxers, you might have the basis for a chemical hair straightener lawsuit. This legal action falls under product liability, meaning you can sue the manufacturer for providing a defective or unsafe product.

To file a hair relaxer claim, your situation needs to meet specific criteria:

• Purchase documentation. You must show that you purchased the hair relaxer or straightening product. Documentation such as purchase receipts, original product packaging with ingredient lists, or photographs proving you owned or used these products help establish that you had access to the product alleged to cause harm.
• Usage details. In a usage log or journal, detail how frequently and for how long you used the product. This information helps establish the level of exposure to potentially harmful chemicals and shows that the product could have contributed to health issues.
• Medical diagnosis. You have medical documentation showing an official diagnosis of cancer that can be linked to your hair straightener product usage. This can include medical records such as pathology reports, diagnostic test results, and treatment records.
• Causal connection. There should be a plausible link between the timing of your product use and your cancer diagnosis. This helps establish that the exposure to the product could realistically have caused the health issue based on a medical understanding of how long such effects might take to develop.
• Exclusion of other causes. You should provide evidence that other common causes of cancer (such as genetics or lifestyle factors) are unlikely to be the primary cause of your condition. This strengthens the claim that the product is responsible.
• Demonstrated damages. You must demonstrate that you have suffered physically, emotionally, or financially because of your illness. Physical harm could include the effects of the cancer itself, emotional harm might involve mental anguish or reduced quality of life, and financial harm could encompass medical bills, lost wages, or other related costs.

6 Ways a Defective Product Lawsuit Can Help You

Cancer-causing hair straighteners and relaxers are defective products that can alter the course of your life. If these products have impacted you or a loved one’s health, filing a hair straightener cancer lawsuit can provide justice and financial compensation for your losses.

Explore how a lawsuit against a hair straightener company can not only secure financial compensation for you and your family but also hold manufacturers accountable for the harm caused, potentially preventing future negligence.

The product liability attorneys at Cochran, Kroll & Associates, P.C. are ready to help you file your claim and represent your interests in court, ensuring that your case goes beyond compensation to make an impact.

1. Coverage for Medical Expenses and Lost Wages

One of the main benefits of taking legal action against the manufacturer of the hazardous hair straightener is to secure compensation for your economic losses, including medical bills and lost wages.

A settlement from a chemical hair straightener lawsuit ensures that you are not burdened with the costs of cancer treatments caused by the defective product. It also provides a financial buffer to cover income lost during your recovery, helping you focus on your health without worrying about financial hardship.

Our attorneys at Cochran, Kroll, & Associates, P.C. will calculate the following quantifiable costs and seek compensation from the negligent hair straightener company:

• Hospital visits. This includes the costs of any initial and subsequent hospital stays required to treat your cancer or other conditions caused by the defective product. We can help you obtain compensation for everything from bed charges to medical consultations.
• Chemotherapy. Your settlement can provide financial support for chemotherapy treatment. This includes the expense of the chemical agents used and the costs associated with administering the treatment, follow-up care, and monitoring.
• Radiation therapy. Your settlement will include the costs of radiation treatment sessions, which are crucial for treating certain types of cancer, like breast cancer. It also covers the expenses related to the setup, planning, and delivery of radiation therapy.
• Surgery and emergency room visits. We can help you receive funds to cover surgical procedures needed to treat complications from the product, such as surgeon fees, anesthesia, and post-operative care.
• Medications and prescriptions. Your recovery award includes the costs of all medications prescribed to alleviate or treat the symptoms and side effects associated with your health issues caused by the hair straightener. It also includes long-term prescriptions that may be necessary.
• Future medical costs due to ongoing treatment. Our legal team can win you compensation for ongoing and anticipated medical expenses as a direct consequence of your cancer. It ensures financial support for long-term treatment plans and therapies.
• Lost wages. This compensation covers the income you lost while unable to work due to medical treatments and recovery, ensuring you do not suffer financially due to lost workdays.
• Loss of future earnings. If the injury affects your ability to earn a similar income as before, we can help you get compensation for lost future earnings to bridge the gap. It provides financial stability if your long-term recovery impacts your career trajectory or leaves you permanently unable to work.

2. Compensation for Emotional Distress and Pain

In addition to the quantifiable aspects of your damages, our experienced product liability attorneys can pursue compensation for your non-quantifiable losses. For instance, you may be entitled to receive compensation for the lifelong pain, suffering, emotional distress, and loss of enjoyment of life associated with a cancer diagnosis.

Emotional distress covers everything a cancer patient might experience after the initial diagnosis, such as fatigue, anxiety, depression, and mental anguish. It also includes social and psychosocial distress, such as social isolation and fears or uncertainty about the future or your family.

Initiating legal action against the manufacturers is the only way to recover compensation for your emotional distress. Depending on the specifics of your case, you may recover compensation through an out-of-court settlement, mediation, arbitration, or a court decision.

3. Exemplary Damages

Suing the manufacturers of a hazardous hair straightening product can potentially result in your case going to trial. While many states and jurisdictions have laws and regulations that allow for the attribution of punitive damages, Michigan works differently.

In Michigan, punitive damages aren’t usually awarded unless they’re explicitly allowed by law. However, judges can award exemplary damages (MCL 600.2954) in some instances. These damages are designed to illustrate the defendant’s reckless or malicious behavior. By imposing extra financial penalties, they are a deterrent to prevent similar actions in the future.

Your product liability attorney from Cochran, Kroll, & Associates, P.C. can seek exemplary damages on your behalf in a hair straightener lawsuit. We can argue that the hair straightener manufacturer used compounds and chemicals known to cause cancer, qualifying you to receive these additional damages.

The courts typically consider the following when awarding exemplary damages. Our attorneys can submit evidence to prove the full extent of the cancer diagnosis on your life, helping you receive the highest award possible:

• Severity of misconduct. We demonstrate how the hair straightener manufacturer knowingly ignored the risks associated with their product, showing an apparent disregard for consumer safety. We can use internal communications, scientific studies, and expert testimony to prove they continued to use harmful chemicals despite knowing their potential harm, strengthening your case for exemplary damages.
• Actual harm caused. We document the serious health effects you’ve experienced, including the specific type of cancer caused by the product and the impact on your well-being. This could include detailing how the diagnosis has led to extensive medical treatments and affected your ability to work.
• Deterrent effect. We argue for a compensation amount that is a strong deterrent against similar future negligence by the manufacturer and others in the industry. By highlighting a case where exemplary damages were awarded in a similar context, we can underline the potential financial consequences for the defendant.
• Defendant’s financial capacity. We assess and present the manufacturer’s financial status using public financial records, subpoenaed testimony, or expert financial analysis to ensure that the exemplary damages are substantial enough to be effective but fair.

4. Alerting Others to the Dangers

There is no way to know the actual number of women who developed health issues due to the use of hair relaxers or straighteners, but the research is startling. Those who use unsafe products are 2.5 times more likely to develop uterine cancer compared to women who don’t use hair straighteners.

Filing a lawsuit can be emotionally challenging but serves a broader purpose beyond securing personal compensation. When you take legal action with the support of compassionate, knowledgeable attorneys, you help protect others, giving your suffering meaning and purpose.

By engaging in a lawsuit with hair straightener manufacturers, you can:

• Increase public awareness. Initiating legal action can lead to media coverage and public discussions about the safety of these products. Through press releases, media interviews, and social media campaigns, your lawsuit can highlight the dangers and potentially harmful effects of these products, raising awareness and urging consumers to be more vigilant.
• Empower others to come forward. Your decision to challenge the manufacturer legally can motivate other victims, who might otherwise feel isolated or powerless, to join the fight and seek accountability.
• Find meaning and peace of mind. Taking legal action allows you to channel your experiences into a constructive effort to improve industry standards, which can provide a sense of accomplishment and emotional relief.

5. Forcing Companies to Implement Safer Practices

A lawsuit against negligent companies can elicit real-world change regarding the safety of hair straightener and relaxer products. Your case can impact not only the design and marketing of unsafe products but it can lead to regulatory changes and further studies that improve health and safety for everyone.

• Product redesign. Companies facing a lawsuit might redesign their products to eliminate harmful components and integrate safer technologies. Many companies have already changed their formulations and use less harmful alternatives for straightening, like keratin, sericin, and glyoxyloyl carbocysteine.
• Improved safety protocols. Manufacturers may overhaul their safety protocols, implementing more rigorous testing and quality assurance practices to prevent future hazards.
• Enhanced labeling and warnings. Legal action can lead to better product labeling, providing clearer usage instructions and warnings about potential risks.
• Corporate policy changes. A lawsuit can pressure a company to revise its policies on product safety, leading to more cautious development and marketing strategies.
• Industry-wide standards. Successful litigation can set a precedent, encouraging other companies in the industry to adopt similar safety measures and promoting a higher standard across the board.
• Creating a precedent. Your lawsuit can set a legal precedent that influences future legislation and policy, leading to broader industry changes and increased safety protocols. In fact, the FDA has already proposed a ban on hair straightening products with formaldehyde, which will go into effect in 2024.

6. Receiving Legal Support and Guidance

Starting legal action for your hair straightener cancer case can be complex and stressful, especially if you have no prior experience with litigation. That’s where experienced product liability attorneys, like our team at Cochran, Kroll & Associates, P.C., can help you through the process.

Our product liability attorneys can assist you with the legal aspects of your case, from research to representation in a court of law. We can also help you collect relevant evidence, connect you with experts, assess the viability of your case, and provide legal counsel and advice. Here’s how we can assist you during your defective product lawsuit:

• Determining the type and extent of your case. We’ll use our expertise to assess if your hair straightening products have design or manufacturing defects. This insight will shape your legal strategy, helping us secure your maximum compensation.
  For instance, if your hair straightener product uses an unsafe list of ingredients or recommends unsafe usage guidelines, it can be considered to have a defective design, allowing us to file a product liability claim.
• Contacting regulatory bodies. We can investigate the manufacturer’s product design specifications and production facilities. If we find evidence of safety regulation violations, we may contact relevant authorities, such as OSHA or the FDA. This can help strengthen your case or increase the chance of a corrective action, such as a product recall.
• Calculating damages owed. Our product liability attorneys have experience dealing with cases similar to yours. We can assess the full extent of your situation to provide an accurate estimation of the damages you are owed. Our team will factor in all current and future damages to make an accurate estimate. Primary factors include the costs of medical treatment, ongoing prescriptions, lost wages and future earning ability, pain, suffering, and loss of enjoyment of life.
• Connecting your diagnosis to the product. Our senior partner, Eileen Kroll, is also an experienced registered nurse. Eileen can break down medical concepts and jargon to insurers or a jury, helping establish a link between the harmful ingredients in hazardous hair straighteners and your cancer case.
• Developing a legal strategy. Our team will use all evidence to develop the right strategy for your case. We will represent you and your interests at every stage, including negotiating a settlement with the manufacturers’ legal and insurance teams. If we can’t reach a satisfactory agreement, we will represent you during trial and argue on your behalf before a judge or a jury.
• Providing ongoing support. Our Cochran, Kroll & Associates, P.C. attorneys offer continuous support, including educational resources, updates, and guidance. We recognize the stress involved in litigation and are committed to standing by your side. You can rely on us to be there for you every step of the way, offering the support you need.

Get Help From Skilled Product Liability Attorneys

If you develop cancer after using hair care products with hazardous chemicals, the manufacturers can be held accountable. The product liability attorneys at Cochran, Kroll & Associates, P.C. can assist you in filing a chemical hair straightener lawsuit and will represent your interests in court if necessary.

Our contingency fee basis means we only get paid if we win your case, so there is no financial risk to you to get started. Call our law firm today at 1-866-MICH-LAW  and schedule your no-obligation, free case evaluation.

Disclaimer : The information provided is general and not for legal advice. The blogs are not intended to provide legal counsel and no attorney-client relationship is created nor intended.