These claims allege that long-term use of chemical hair straighteners and relaxers is associated with uterine and ovarian cancer, and that manufacturers failed to warn. Eligibility generally turns on the duration and frequency of use and the specific diagnosis.
Reviewed by Omar A. Cooper, Esq. · Last updated September 3, 2026
What the litigation is about
A 2022 study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health reported a higher uterine-cancer risk among women who used chemical hair-straightening products frequently, and it is the study most of this litigation is built around. The claims allege that the manufacturers knew enough to warn and did not.
The products at issue are relaxers and straighteners used over years, frequently beginning in childhood — which is part of why the exposure histories in these cases are long and detailed.
Who may qualify
Eligibility in this litigation generally turns on:
- regular use of chemical relaxers or straighteners, usually over several years;
- a diagnosis of uterine cancer, uterine fibroids requiring surgery, or ovarian cancer;
- the diagnosis date relative to the applicable deadline;
- whether use was salon-applied, home-applied, or both — both count, and salon records can help.
What we will ask you for
A review moves quickly when you have these to hand — and none of them are required to call:
- the pathology report and diagnosis date;
- surgical records where a hysterectomy or myomectomy was performed;
- the brands used and the approximate years and frequency;
- salon names and any appointment or payment history;
- family or personal photographs, which frequently help establish the period of use.
Status, and what it means for you
This litigation is consolidated as a federal multidistrict proceeding, which coordinates pre-trial discovery across thousands of individual cases while each claim keeps its own facts and its own value. The Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation publishes the current pending-case count; this page deliberately does not repeat a figure that changes every month.
No outcome can be promised in any mass tort, and eligibility is not the same as recovery. What an eligibility review gives you is a straight answer about whether a claim exists and whether it is worth pursuing.
Sources: National Institutes of Health — hair straightener study, 2022 · U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation — pending MDL statistics
Common questions
I used several different brands over the years.
That is typical and it does not disqualify a claim. Recording every brand you can recall is part of the review.
I had fibroids, not cancer. Does that qualify?
It may, depending on severity and treatment. Fibroid claims are evaluated differently from cancer claims, so it is worth asking rather than assuming.
Talk to Omar about this claim.
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