Hair Straightener Cancer

According to recent studies, multiple types of cancer are prone to develop in connection with frequent use of chemical hair straighteners. The heightened hair straightener cancer risk is clear enough that it resulted in a proposed U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ban on formaldehyde and formaldehyde-releasing chemicals in hair straightening products.

Multiple studies have found an association between chemical hair straightening products and the occurrence of certain female reproductive cancers. 

• A 2021 study from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) found that women who used hair straightener chemical products at least four times a year were more than twice as likely to develop ovarian cancer.
• An October 2022 NIH study, called the Sister Study, surveyed 34,000 women over an 11-year period. The study found that 1.64% of women who didn’t use chemical hair straighteners developed uterine cancer by age 70. However, among frequent users of hair straightener products, the possibility of developing uterine cancer by age 70 was about three times as high.
• An October 2023 finding from the Black Women’s Health Study (BWHS) conducted by Boston University concluded that women who used hair relaxers more than twice a year or for more than five years were upward of 50% more likely to develop cancer of the uterus.
• Other studies indicate that up to 90% of Black women have used or still use hair straightener chemical products and hair relaxer chemical products. That’s the highest percentage of any race. 

Terms to know

Some key terms related to hair straightening chemical products and cancer risk include:

• Carcinogen: A carcinogen is any substance or product that causes a higher cancer risk.
• Endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs): These are chemicals known to disrupt the proper function of the endocrine system, which regulates hormones and impacts growth, development and fertility.
• Formaldehyde: Formaldehyde is a chemical often used or released in hair straightening products as a glue-like substance to hold the hair in place for longer. Exposure to formaldehyde — a known human carcinogen — poses a significant safety risk.
• Hair relaxers: These are products that relax the natural curls in hair, allowing the hair to lay straight.
• Hair straighteners: Similar to hair relaxers, hair straighteners attempt to reduce the natural bonds in curly hair, allowing it to lay straight. The terms “hair straightener” and “hair relaxer” are sometimes used interchangeably.

Certain chemicals in hair straightener products may increase the risk of cancer by affecting hormone levels in the body. The endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) included in some hair straightener products are known to disrupt the normal activity of the human endocrine system. They may harm the system, too. 

The endocrine system impacts every cell in the body, regulating biological processes that include how the reproductive system functions.

When hormone levels in the body vary even slightly, people can suffer from health problems, including but not limited to:

• Cancer
• Reproductive impairment, due to reproductive cancer treatments

It’s important to understand that exposure to EDCs may increase one’s risk of cancer. The aforementioned NIH Sister Study suggests that the frequent use of chemical hair straightening products leads to a greater risk of ovarian cancer and uterine cancer.

The cancers associated with the regular use of hair-straightener products are uterine cancer, ovarian cancer and endometrial cancer. Frequent exposure to hormonal-disrupting compounds found in hair straightening products could result in a higher risk of developing these cancers.

In October 2023, the FDA proposed a ban on formaldehyde and formaldehyde-releasing chemicals in hair straightening chemical products due to an increased risk of certain cancers believed to be caused by these chemicals’ inclusion in the products. However, the FDA has not yet implemented the ban, originally scheduled to take effect in April 2024.

In April 2024, the FDA told National Public Radio (NPR) that it was still finalizing the wording for the rule. The FDA did not comment on any new timeline for enacting the ban and it still is not in place.

Hair straightener brands are facing class action lawsuits and multidistrict litigation (MDL) in federal court. The litigation highlights the link between increased cancer risk and the use of carcinogenic chemicals in hair straightener and hair relaxer products.

An MDL is a legal action where all similar cases filed in United States Federal Courts are transferred to a single federal judge. The MDL makes the court system more efficient when a large number of plaintiffs have similar claims. 

A class action lawsuit, on the other hand, involves a group of plaintiffs who’ve suffered for the same reason and bring the lawsuit as a group. MDLs don’t combine into one case. Each MDL action is still an individual case, even though one judge is overseeing the pretrial actions. An MDL gives each plaintiff the ability to make their own decision on how to proceed in the case.

The MDL for hair straightener plaintiffs is MDL 3060 In re: Hair Relaxer Marketing Sales Practices and Products Liability Litigation in the Northern District of Illinois. The Honorable Mary Rowland is the presiding judge. Multiple Motley Rice hair straightener cancer attorneys have leadership positions in the MDL, including:

• Fidelma Fitzpatrick as co-lead counsel
• Tope Leyimu as co-chair of the L’Oreal Liability Committee and a member of the Leadership Development Committee
• Carmen Scott as co-chair of the Leadership Development Committee

Does keratin cause cancer?

Certain chemicals sometimes found in keratin hair treatments may increase the risk of cancer. Formaldehyde, a known carcinogen, is often one of the chemicals added to keratin hair treatments. This means keratin products might also elevate a woman’s cancer risk.

While keratin and cancer may be linked, claims related to keratin products aren’t part of the hair straightener and relaxer MDL.

Do perms cause cancer?

Hair relaxer treatments — which are sometimes also called “perms” — maybe linked to increased risk of ovarian and uterine cancer.

The Sister Study showed that frequent use of hair straightening products increased hair straightener uterine cancer risk by about 2.5 times.

What types of hair straightener products are the subject of lawsuits?

The defendants in the MDL are companies that used to make or still make brands of chemical hair straightening products. The brands involved include:

• Affirm®
• Africa’s Best®
• African Pride®
• Cantu®
• Crème of Nature®
• Dark & Lovely®
• Design Essentials®
• Hawaiian Silky®
• Just For Me®
• Mizani®
• Motions®
• Optimum®
• ORS Olive Oil®
• Pink Conditioning No-Lye Relaxer®
• Profectiv Mega Growth®
• Revlon Realistic®
• Roots of Nature®
• Silk Elements®
• Smooth Touch No-Lye Relaxer®
• Soft & Beautiful®
• TCB®
• TCB Naturals® 

Who qualifies for the hair straightener cancer lawsuit?

People diagnosed with uterine cancer, ovarian cancer or endometrial cancer after regularly using hair straightener chemical products may have grounds to file a hair straightener lawsuit. These individuals may have used the products at home or at a salon (or in both settings), and they may have used any combination of several brands over a number of years. 

Cases filed in the MDL are brought against the companies that misrepresented the safety of their hair straighteners and failed to warn consumers about the potentially harmful impacts of their products.

Hair straightener lawyers can review your case to determine if you’re eligible to file a lawsuit. They will also help you gather the necessary information, including proof of frequent use and proof of diagnosis.

Can I sue hair relaxer companies for breast cancer?

Breast cancer isn’t currently a qualifying disease for cases filed in the hair relaxer MDL.

Some evidence suggests an association between hair straightening products and breast cancer, but additional research is needed. 

Motley Rice has a history of standing up for and representing women harmed by defective and dangerous products. We fight hard for women who did nothing wrong yet suffered life-changing injuries from simply using a product for which the manufacturer downplayed or ignored its danger.

We have a track record of helping injured women with various product liability lawsuits, including those who suffered:

• Ovarian cancer from the use of talc-based baby powder products for feminine hygiene
• Health complications from the use of transvaginal mesh for the treatment of pelvic organ prolapse (POP) and stress urinary incontinence (SUI)
• Health complications from birth control devices like Essure® and Paragard®
• Breast implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma (BIA-ALCL) from the use of Allergan implants

The injury lawsuits mentioned here can involve complexities in establishing the link between your use of the product and your injury. Relying on a law firm with a track record in these types of cases is important. 

Read more about our experience with women’s health lawsuits.