Actos is a drug that is used to treat Type 2 diabetes. Studies on the drug revealed that prolonged use of Actos increases the risk of patients developing bladder cancer. Actos has also been linked to several serious side-effects, such as heart-failure in patients that had no prior history of heart problems. To date, there have been thousands of Actos bladder cancer lawsuits filed. Actos cancer victims allege that Takeda Pharmaceuticals failed to warn patients of the potential risks involved with the medication. Tort litigation experts claim that Takeda is accused of destroying important documents that prove the company had knowledge of the bladder cancer risks associated with Actos over a decade ago.
Alternative Treatment Options for Bladder Cancer
Common treatment options for bladder cancer include surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation, and treatments are based on the stage and grade of the tumor. Stages range from 1 to 4, and the early stages of bladder cancer are considered to be non invasive, and the latter stages are viewed as invasive. Patient’s looking for alternative treatments should research the active and recruiting clinical trials for bladder cancer. Additional treatments options include Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG), and Immunotherapy. BCG treatment is typically used in the early stages of bladder cancer, and the purpose of this treatment is to eliminate cancer cells and prevent new cancer cells from occurring. Immunotherapy uses a patient’s immune system to fight the disease and this treatment is considered to have fewer complications and side effects than other treatment types. Bladder cancer patients that smoke cigarettes are encouraged to stop smoking immediately due to an increased risk of bladder cancer recurrence.
Help With Filing a Lawsuit and the Status of Actos Litigation
Actos litigation is still in the early stages, but the first of many Actos bladder cancer trials began in January of 2014. If you have used Actos for over 12 months and developed bladder cancer, you can file a lawsuit to claim compensation for your injury. Filing an Actos lawsuit can help patients afford the cost of treatments associated with a bladder cancer diagnosis.
The cost of treatment can add up quickly when you consider bladder cancer tests, surgery, and hospitalization. Actos victims should be afforded the opportunity to seek the best available treatments from the top bladder cancer doctors. Receiving treatment from a bladder cancer specialist can improve a patient’s prognosis and life expectancy. Lawsuits can also be filed for pain and suffering, lost wages, loss of consortium, and punitive damages. Punitive damages are judgments awarded to plaintiffs in an effort to hold pharmaceutical companies responsible for their wrongdoing.
Multi-District Litigation & Class Action Lawsuits
Hiring an experienced law firm is imperative when filing an Actos claim. Lawyers that have experience with drug lawsuits can often recover higher settlement amounts for patients. Filing a claim quickly is important to avoid losing your right to compensation because the statute of limitations (SOL) for your case has expired. To ensure the effectiveness of Actos litigation, a multi-district (MDL) litigation has been formed. This type of litigation typically benefits patients more than a class action lawsuit because it enables the injured victims to obtain individual compensation based on their case, rather than a settlement amount that gets divided equally to each member of a class action lawsuit.
