Former Actos User Developed Bladder Cancer After Just Four Months on the Drug

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June 19, 2012 – A Louisiana man has filed a lawsuit alleging that Actos (generic: pioglitazone) caused him to develop bladder cancer just four months after initiating a regimen with the widely-prescribed diabetes drug. Although most lawsuits of this type are filed on behalf of individuals who developed bladder cancer after using Actos for extended periods of time, the recent claim indicates that the plaintiff was diagnosed in October 2011, after taking the drug from April through July 2011. Manufactured and marketed by Takeda Pharmaceuticals, Actos is an FDA-approved prescription medication intended for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.

Actos Bladder Cancer Lawsuit Update 8/2/12: Last month, a class action lawsuit was filed in Quebec, Canada on behalf of individuals who were diagnosed with bladder cancer after taking Actos. This is at least the second class action filed over Actos bladder cancer in Canada, after a similar claim was filed in Ontario last December. Click here to learn more.

Actos Bladder Cancer Lawsuit Update 7/17/12: According to an order issued earlier this week, it will be more than two years before the first federal Actos bladder cancer lawsuits go to trial. Last December, the Actos multidistrict litigation (MDL) was centralized before U.S. District Judge Rebecca Doherty in the Western District of Louisiana for consolidated handling during pretrial proceedings. Click here to learn more.

Free Actos Lawsuit Evaluation: If you or a loved one has been injured by Actos, you should contact our law firm immediately. You may be entitled to compensation by filing a suit against the manufacturer of Actos and we can help.

What’s the problem?

The new Actos bladder cancer lawsuit was filed last month on behalf of Darin Andrews in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana, where all such claims have been consolidated as part of a multidistrict litigation (MDL).

Although Andrews’ lawsuit is unique in that he allegedly developed bladder cancer after only four months of being treated with Actos, he is hardly the first to claim the drug caused the disease. Over the past year and a half, concerns have emerged around the country about the risk of bladder cancer from Actos, after interim data from an ongoing decade-long study indicated that long-term use of the drug was associated with an increased risk of the disease.

Last June, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) issued a press release stating that updated information would be added to Actos labels indicating that use of the drug for more than a year may increase the risk of developing bladder cancer. Although Actos was recalled in France due to the bladder cancer risk, the FDA has yet to decide whether a similar recall will be issued here at home in the United States.

According to court documents, Andrews claims that Takeda concealed its knowledge that Actos has the potential to cause bladder cancer, and that the medication was the direct and proximate cause of his disease.

“[Takeda Pharmaceuticals] actually knew of the defective nature of their product… yet continued to design, manufacture, market, distribute and sell [Actos] so as to maximize sales and profits at the expense of the general public’s health and safety in conscious disregard of the foreseeable harm caused by this product,” Andrews alleges in the lawsuit.

Andrews joins an ever-increasing number of former Actos users who have filed legal claims against Takeda in courthouses around the country. The federal Actos litigation has been consolidated into an MDL before Judge Rebecca F. Doherty in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana.

Do I Have an Actos Lawsuit?

The Product Liability & Defective Drug Litigation Group at our law firm is an experienced team of trial lawyers that focus on the representation of plaintiffs in Actos lawsuits. We are handling individual litigation nationwide and currently accepting new side effects cases in all 50 states.

Free Actos Lawsuit Evaluation: If you or a loved one has been injured by Actos, you should contact our law firm immediately. You may be entitled to compensation by filing an Actos injury suit and we can help.