Actos a “Dangerous” Drug

A new Actos case has been filed in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois by plaintiff James Porter West, Jr, who filed his lawsuit with the help of Actos attorneys on the 9th of July, 2012. His complaint claims that the diabetes medication is a “defective and unreasonably dangerous drug” and claims that drug maker Takeda knew or should have known about the potential side effects associated with Actos, including bladder dancer, and hid this information from the public in the interest of continuing to profit from sales of the medication.

Knowledge of side effects concealed, plaintiff claims

The Food and Drug Administration approved Actos in 1999 in order to help treat the symptoms of type II diabetes. Since then, research has all but proved a link between Actos use and bladder cancer, showing that patients who take the drug for more than a year have a greater risk of developing bladder cancer, a serious side effect. According to the lawsuit filed by Plaintiff West, he took Actos for 13 months and developed bladder cancer as a result of his use of the medication. His lawsuit claims that Takeda “concealed their knowledge that Actos can cause bladder cancer” and “did not adequately inform consumers and the prescribing medical community about the risks of bladder cancer with use of Actos for more than twelve months.”

The Food and Drug Administration issued a Public Safety announcement in September of 2010 that released the results of a study conducted on Actos and similar drugs by Kaiser Permanente. This study showed that a patient’s risk of bladder cancer increases with dose of the drug and duration of a patient’s use of it, and statistical significance is reached after 24 months.

Lawyers filing cancer lawsuits nationwide

Hundreds of former Actos patients have contacted lawyers, hoping for compensation for Actos claims they make against drug maker Takeda regarding side effects such as bladder cancer. Some European countries have already issued a recall of Actos, and many patients are pushing for the United States to do the same.

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