A California jury found that Monsato’s Roundup caused a married couple’s non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Alva and Alberta Pilliod were awarded over $2 billion in damages in their case against Monsanto.
The Pilliods believe their cancer was caused by using Roundup on their property between the years of 1975 and 2011. They filed their lawsuit in 2017 after they were diagnosed with cancer in 2011 and 2015.
The jury awarded the Pilliods $55 million in non-economic damages and $1 billion in punitive damages for each of them.
This is the third consecutive jury verdict against Monsanto in the United States.
Expert toxicologist, Dr. William Sawyer, told the jury that the carcinogen found in Roundup, glyphosate, and polyethoxylated tallow amine (POEA) easily penetrates the skin. The body then stores the harmful chemicals in the body and ultimately develops into lymphoma.
Other experts called by the couple testified that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved Roundup in the ’70s per fraudulent studies performed by Industrial Bio-Test Laboratories. Monsanto continued to produce Roundup after the studies were exposed and the EPA’s toxicologist requested they stop production.
Monsanto knew the dangers of their product and failed to warn customers, many of whom are now facing life-threatening illness. There are still over 13,000 cases alleging Roundup of causing cancer.
