Cancer is the primary injury caused by chemical hair straighteners and primarily affects women. Many curly-haired women will treat their hair to make it flat as a style. Unfortunately, the chemicals in these treatments have been found to cause cancer in women, sometimes leading to death. Cancer can affect different areas of your body and lead to other medical issues. Cancer changes your life forever, and you cannot accomplish the same tasks as before or at work. You must discuss your condition and its correlation to your hair treatment with a Philadelphia mass tort lawyer.
Uterine cancer
The most common cancer women suffer from chemical hair straighteners is uterine cancer. It is common across the country whether or not you use these chemicals, but using hair serum can increase your risk. There are two types of uterine cancer: endometrial, which is treatable, and sarcoma, which is aggressive and challenging to treat. Phthalate metabolites are in many hair straightening products, a chemical associated with cancer. Unfortunately, uterine cancer affects Black women twice as much as white women. Uterine cancer is prevalent among most lawsuits against hair relaxer manufacturers, but there are no settlements yet.
Uterine fibroids
Uterine fibroids are solid tumors in women and result from an overgrowth of cells in the uterus. One-third are symptomatic, and others are almost harmless. Fibroids can affect women to varying degrees. Black women are at higher risk of developing fibroids and often complain of pelvic pressure and abnormal uterine bleeding. Unfortunately, severe cases lead to hysterectomy, which prevents women from having children. Many women also feel bladder and rectum pressure with excessive bleeding during their periods. Armenia and a larger waistline are also symptoms of fibroids. Treatment for symptomatic fibroids is surgery.
Endometrial cancer
The inner wall of the uterus is where you will develop endometrial cancer with five potential stages. Type one is the most common with the lowest risk of spreading but type two has a higher risk of extrauterine disease. Endometrial cancer often leads to obesity, and treatment consists of surgery. Most women are diagnosed with endometrial cancer when they reach menopause, with less than 10% getting diagnosed under 44. Hair relaxers will develop endometrial cancer faster in younger women. The risk of endometrial cancer after long-term use of chemical hair straighteners is 150%, shockingly.
Ovarian cancer
DEHP is a phthalate chemical in hair relaxers, making the product stick to the scape and absorb into the hair. It causes disruptions to the endocrine system and triggers hormonal imbalances. While this cancer is rare, it affects 1 in every 100 women and is very dangerous. Survival rates are under 49%, often attributed to late diagnosis. Only 20% of ovarian cancer cases are diagnosed during stage 1. Ovarian cancers directly affect your female reproductive organs, preventing you from producing eggs, and are more likely when you use hair relaxers. Using hair relaxers four times a year increases your cancer risk exponentially.
Breast cancer
Breast cancer can cause you to lose your breasts and other severe side effects. There is sufficient evidence to support the correlation between breast cancer and hair treatment products. Using hair perms and other chemicals to change your hair texture is proven to increase your chances of developing breast cancer by nearly 30%.
Take legal action now!
Hair straighteners and hair perms are dangerous, and many women and men who undergo these treatments do not realize they are risking their health. Hair perms use the same cancer-causing chemicals as hair straighteners. While there are no hair perm lawsuits, they are soon to follow. In the meantime, if you are a consistent user of chemical hair straighteners and are suffering from any of the conditions in this article, you must speak to a Philadelphia hair straightener mass tort lawyer to begin your case and get the justice you deserve. Contact Kwartler Manus, LLC, for an initial consultation today.