Fighting for a California Manicurist with Mesothelioma from Talc

A Life Built Around Work and Family

For decades, Jody worked hard to build a career she genuinely loved, running a salon with her sister in Glendora, California for more than 30 years.

“I enjoy it,” Jody said of being a manicurist. “I sit on my butt and talk to people all day.”

Jody was always someone who kept busy. Even outside the salon, she worked other jobs, including positions at a dental office and with a school district. Work, she joked, was essentially her hobby.

But Jody also had an active life outside of work, spending time with her husband, children, grandchildren, and extended family members and friends. At the time, she considered herself healthy and had little reason to think that anything was seriously wrong.

“I was reasonably healthy,” she said. “I really had no issues whatsoever.”

Yet over time, Jody began experiencing symptoms that doctors struggled to explain. After years of unexplained symptoms, she eventually received a diagnosis that turned her world upside down — and led her to our mesothelioma law firm for help.

A Shocking Diagnosis

Jody’s health problems started with unexplained bleeding that began 20 years after she’d gone through menopause, and increasing weakness that caused her to fall.

“My legs just wouldn't hold me up, and no one could get me up off the floor,” she said. “And that happened a couple of times.”

It took years before Jody saw a doctor who treated her concerns as an urgent matter. When he performed a laparoscopy, which involved inserting a video camera into her belly, he found a tumor.

The doctor told Jody that the situation was “above my pay grade” and referred her to Loma Linda Medical Center. When surgeons opened her abdomen, they couldn't believe what they found.

“They were amazed,” Jody recalled. “I had over 20 tumors in my abdomen.”

After removing Jody’s appendix, which was covered with small tumors, the team at Loma Linda performed a biopsy. They discovered that the tumors were peritoneal mesothelioma, a rare, aggressive cancer that begins in the lining of the abdomen and has one known cause: asbestos.

For Jody, the diagnosis was shocking — not only because of the severity of the disease, but because she had no idea how she could have developed it.

A Trusted Product with a Deadly Secret

In the 1980s, a friend introduced Jody to talcum powder as a way to manage perspiration in the California heat, and it quickly became part of her everyday routine.

For decades, she used products like Gold Bond® and Johnson’s® Baby Powder on a near-daily basis, never questioning the safety of their ingredients. Jody applied the powder after showering all the way up until her surgery.

Learning that products she had used so routinely could be dangerous was difficult to process. After years of trusting a familiar brand, Jody was suddenly confronting a possibility she had never considered.

“I prefer to be naive,” Jody said. “I know there's evil in the world, I just don't want to know it firsthand, and these folks brought it to my world.”

Fighting Cancer and Finding a New Normal

Jody's mesothelioma treatment was aggressive. Surgeons performed a hysterectomy and removed as many tumors as possible before treating the remaining cancer with heated chemotherapy, washing her abdomen with the chemotherapy solution for about an hour and a half.

Years later, Jody has not had a recurrence. She realizes the significance of that milestone with a cancer that can be especially deadly.

“I'm grateful for the chemo bath,” she expressed. “It's been just over 3 years, and I'm still here.”

However, Jody's life has not returned to what it was before her diagnosis. The physical impact of her illness and treatment side effects have changed what she can do and how much she can take on.

She still goes into the salon, but activities that once seemed ordinary can now be difficult. For her granddaughter's birthday, she couldn't walk around the zoo with her family. Going to church eventually meant buying a walker just to get from the parking lot to the building.

“I am not the same person that I was,” Jody said. “I only work one job now. I still get restless and want to go do other stuff, but I can't.”

The changes have affected more than Jody's work and social life. For years, she had been the primary caregiver for her husband. Now, she needs help with responsibilities she once handled herself.

“I have always been his caregiver, and that's the way it was supposed to be,” she said. “And now I have to hire somebody to do a lot of those things for him, because physically, I can't.”

From Reluctance to Resolve: Choosing to Hold Talc Companies Accountable

At first, Jody wasn't sure she wanted to pursue a mesothelioma lawsuit. Taking legal action didn't fit easily with the way she had always thought about right and wrong. Her faith had taught her not to look for conflict or retaliation.

“Because of my faith, I wasn't sure how I felt about it,” said Jody. “No suing, boys. It didn't feel good. It really didn't feel good.”

But the more Jody learned about the link between talc and asbestos, as well as what companies may have known about the dangers associated with their products, the harder it became for her to view the situation simply as something that had happened to her.

“These little buggers knew darn well what they were doing,” Jody said. “So yeah, now I'm just kind of mad at them.”

That anger ultimately changed how Jody viewed filing a lawsuit. For her, seeking accountability wasn't about revenge. It was about confronting what she believes companies did to consumers who trusted their products.

“It's unconscionable what they have done to hundreds of thousands, millions of people,” she said. “What they have done to them to make their profits. Shame on them.”

After everything she has experienced, Jody wants the companies responsible to understand the human cost of what they did — and to answer for the harm they caused.

Finding a Legal Team She Could Trust

Jody's hesitation about pursuing a lawsuit began to fade once she met the mesothelioma attorneys who would represent her. After everything she had been through with her diagnosis and treatment, she needed to feel that the people handling her case understood what she was facing and would treat her with compassion.

“The gentleman that came to my house initially, he was beyond kind,” said Jody.

That first impression grew into a deeper trust as Jody got to know her legal team. She developed a particularly close relationship with one of the attorneys handling her case.

“I'm going to adopt him when all is said and done,” Jody joked. “I am just very fond of him, and he makes me feel extremely comfortable. He's a blessing.”

The personal connection they developed mattered to Jody. A legal case involves unfamiliar terminology and complicated decisions — but she never felt like she had to figure it all out on her own.

“I don't think I had any concerns throughout the whole process because of them,” she said. “They knew what they were doing, and they have apparently done this for many people. I trusted my lawyer 100% to do what needed to be done and take care of business.”

This confidence allowed Jody to step back and focus on her health rather than trying to manage the legal process while dealing with the lasting effects of her diagnosis.

“I didn't have to worry about it,” she said. “I didn't really even have to think about it.”

A Settlement to Help Her Move Forward

When Jody received compensation from her asbestos claims, she didn't see it as a way to undo what mesothelioma had taken from her. The diagnosis changed her health, her work, and her ability to care for her husband. No amount of money could erase those losses.

“I wish that the companies hadn't done what they did,” she said. “I wish that I, and other people like me, never had to go through any of this.”

The compensation has made her life more manageable. One of the biggest differences has been the ability to pay for caregiving assistance at home.

“I'm grateful,” said Jody. “Now I can hire people to help me take care of my husband. There’s a gentleman who comes over to dress his ankle wound so I don't have to bend over at that crazy angle.

I’ve been able to hire someone to take him to his appointments because I can't walk far enough to get from the parking lot.”

At 69, Jody still has difficult days. She gets frustrated by the limitations mesothelioma has left behind, but she doesn't want them to define the rest of her life.

“I'm tired of being sick and tired,” she said. “But I'm still here, and I'm grateful for that.”

Jody’s family has helped her adjust, finding new ways to spend time together and make memories even when she can't do everything she once could. For Jody, moving forward has meant accepting that some things have changed — but she can still enjoy the life she has.

“You just have to do things a little bit different,” she said. “And that's where I'm at.”

Why Jody Wants to Share Her Story

Jody believes there are others like her who used talcum powder products sold by well-known companies like Johnson & Johnson for years, never suspecting the powder could be contaminated with asbestos — or that it could be linked to their cancer.

“Like myself, there has to be many more people out there that don't put two and two together,” said Jody. “We would have never known if you guys hadn't put a commercial out there.”

That realization is part of why Jody shares her story. She wants other mesothelioma patients to know they aren’t responsible for their diagnosis, and that talc companies can be held accountable through legal action that may result in talcum powder compensation.

“These people were wrong for what they did, and they should be made to pay for it,” expressed Jody. “So the more people that your company can help, that makes me happy.”

The support that Jody received from Sokolove Law helped take one burden off her shoulders during a time when she was already dealing with the physical and emotional effects of mesothelioma.

She felt confident that she had people in her corner who understood what she was going through and knew how to handle the legal process.

“I really didn't even have to think about it,” she said. “They took really good care of me.”

Sokolove Law: Fighting for Families Affected by Mesothelioma Since 1979

Jody's story is a reminder that even someone who never worked with or around asbestos can still be at risk for mesothelioma. If you or someone you love has been diagnosed with this cancer, you don't have to figure out what comes next alone.

As a leading mesothelioma law firm, Sokolove Law has spent over 45 years helping clients identify the source of their asbestos exposure and pursue their legal options.

To date, we’ve secured more than $5.5 Billion in mesothelioma compensation for families across the country.

Call (800) 647-3434 now or fill out our contact form to get a free case review. Let us help you fight for the justice you deserve.