Roundup, a Monsanto weed-killer product, has been in the news quite a lot lately. Lawsuit after lawsuit has been filed and judgments have been recently rendered — not in favor or Roundup — and there are thousands of more to come. What injury has Monsanto’s weed-killer caused in all of this product liability and personal injury cases? Cancer.
Here, we discuss the type of cancer Roundup causes, what exactly in Roundup causes cancer, and what you can do about it.
What cancer does Monsanto’s weed-killer Roundup cause?
Roundup is most known to causes non-Hodgkin lymphoma. In fact, a very recent study, Exposure to Glyphosate-Based Herbicides and Risk for Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma: A Meta-Analysis and Supporting Evidence, found that exposure to Glyphosate raised the risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma by 41%. The evidence, according to this study, supports the link between this cancer and products like Monsanto’s Roundup.
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma is cancer that begins in the lymph nodes or lymph tissue most often found in the spleen, bone marrow, thymus, tonsils, or digestive tract (i.e., stomach and intestines). As it progresses, it can invade organs and other tissue.
Prognosis depends on the:
- the patient’s age — if 60 or below, your prognosis is better;
- the stage of cancer — if stage I or II as opposed to III or IV, then your prognosis is better;
- whether cancer has invaded other organs in addition to lymph nodes and lymph tissue — the less the cancer has spread, the better;
- the success of the treatment and ability to conduct daily activities — the more you can function on your own the better; and
- the blood level of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) — normal LDH is good, but high LDH is bad.
An older study from 2014 identified that there was a link between pesticides and non-Hodgkin lymphoma as well as an increased risk to develop other cancers, like leukemia and multiple myeloma.
What ingredient in Monsanto’s weed-killer Roundup causes cancer?
Glyphosate is an ingredient in Roundup that is not only believed to cause but has been proven via research to be a leading cause of non-Hodgkin lymphoma and other cancers. The International Agency for Research on Cancer, a subsidiary of the World Health Organization, indicated in 2015 that weed killers like Monsanto’s Roundup containing Glyphosate are a “probable carcinogen”.
The International Agency for Research on Cancer supported its claim using reports highlighting the significant increase in non-Hodgkin lymphoma among landscapers, golf course caregivers, farmers, and nursery workers, among other workers in similar industries, that employ Roundup on a regular basis.
Judges and juries are seeing the link, too, and believing the same and other studies.
What should you do if you have been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma and believe Roundup caused it?
If you have been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma and believe Roundup caused it, then there are two primary things you need to do:
- Follow your doctor’s orders and treatment plan exactly as it is provided to you; and
- Contact an experienced Roundup product liability attorney in California.
With regard to the last point, you will also want to ensure you have collected all necessary documentation, from medical bills to medical and care plans to employment records or receipts indicating you used and/or purchased Roundup regularly to use over the years. These kinds of cases can come down to the technical and scientific points, so as much documentation you have the better.
