Two Women File Product Liability Lawsuits Against Actos
Two women filed a product liability lawsuit against Actos after they developed bladder cancer. The trial began on Monday, March 10th, in Clark County, Nevada.
The trial has not become part of the Actos MDL against Takeda Pharmaceuticals.
The plaintiffs – Delores Cipriano, 81, of Henderson, and Bertha Triana, 80, of Las Vegas – seek the largest personal injury verdict in Las Vegas trial history: $1 billion in punitive damages.
Cipriano was diagnosed in July 2012 with bladder cancer, after taking Actos to treat her Type 2 diabetes for 14 months. Triana was diagnosed in May of that year as well, after taking Actos for two years to treat her diabetes.
“Due to Takeda Pharmaceutical’s conscious decision to keep this information from consumers and their doctors, we now have patients who are left to bear the permanent injury caused by Actos,” Cipriano’s lawyer, Robert Eglet, said in a statement seen by the newspaper. “That’s why we will be asking for over a billion-dollar punitive damage verdict.”
Although the personal injury trials against Takeda Pharmaceuticals have gone to the plaintiffs, the manufacturer has had the rulings overturned so the company has not had to pay for the bladder cancer injuries. The first trial, which began in April of last year, was thrown out because the plaintiff’s attorneys did not have enough evidence to prove a link between Actos use and bladder cancer, although several medical studies have backed up that link.
Then, in September of last year, a judge set aside the $1.7 million verdict in another Actos personal injury case.
However, the multidistrict litigation (MDL) against Takeda Pharmaceuticals is underway. Last month, the plaintiff in the first bellwether case claimed that the manufacturer knew about the link between their blockbuster diabetes drug and bladder cancer, and chose to hide that information from the FDA.
“You’ll hear testimony from Terry’s doctors that if they’d been told the truth about this drug, they would not have given it” to him, said Mark Lanier, attorney for plaintiff Terry Allen.
“The breadth of Takeda leadership whose files have been lost, deleted or destroyed is, in and of itself, disturbing,” Judge Rebecca Doherty wrote in a Jan. 27 filing. Judge Doherty said she would allow Allen’s lawyers to tell jurors that Takeda intentionally destroyed the files, in order to punish the company for its negligence.
The MDL currently has 2,800 cases alleging that Actos caused bladder cancer and other serious side effects.
The two plaintiffs in Las Vegas will not join the MDL, and instead have chosen to pursue compensation at a state-level liability trial. Cipriano stated that she has undergone two surgeries to remove tumors from her bladder, and Triana has had four operations. The elderly women seek to recover medical bills, which they allege they would not have incurred if Actos had not caused their bladder cancer.
The Strom Law Firm Can Help with Personal Injury and Wrongful Death Cases, Including Against Actos
If you or a loved one have taken Actos to treat Type 2 diabetes, and have since suffered dangerous side effects including developing bladder cancer, heart disease, liver failure, or diabetic macular edema, you may be entitled to compensation. The attorneys at the Strom Law Firm can help with personal injury cases, including against Actos manufacturer Takeda Pharmaceuticals. We offer free, confidential consultations to discuss the facts of your case, so do not hesitate to contact us. 803.252.4800
