IARC Revises Classification of Talc as "Probably Carcinogenic to Humans"

International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) which revises the classification of talc to “probably carcinogenic to humans (Group 2A) on the basis of a combination of limited evidence for cancer in humans (for ovarian cancer), sufficient evidence for cancer in experimental animals, and strong mechanistic evidence that talc exhibits key characteristics of carcinogens in human primary cells and experimental systems”. 

IARC had previously classified talc as ‘possibly carcinogenic to humans (Group 2B)’.
The outcomes of this IARC evaluation has not been based on any new epidemiological or animal studies; only limited new mechanistic data was used in the assessment. What has, however, changed, was the assessment approach taken by IARC, which put more weight to the mechanistic data. This resulted in a different evaluation outcome vis-à-vis IARC’s previous assessment.

The IARC evaluations do not trigger any amendments in the EU or UK Cosmetics legislation.