On February 13, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration requested the popular weight loss drugs Belviq and Belviq XR (the ‘extended release’ version) be recalled from the U.S. marketplace. The recall comes after clinical studies uncovered an unacceptable increased risk of developing pancreatic, colon, rectal, and/or lung cancer.

Available only by prescription, Belviq was first approved for weight loss and weight-related medical problems in 2012. Now the FDA believes the risk of developing cancer outweighs the purported benefits of the drug.

Our firm is currently investigating cases Nationwide where individuals took Belviq before being diagnosed with one of the following types of cancer:

• Lung Cancer
• Colorectal Cancer (including colon and rectal cancer)
• Pancreatic Cancer

If you or someone you know has been diagnosed with one of these forms of cancer after taking Belviq, contact us online or call us at 1-866-252-3535.

Do not stop taking any medication without consulting your healthcare provider.

Zantac (Ranitidine) belongs to a class of medications called H2-blockers. These popular medications are used for treating gastrointestinal conditions such as acid indigestion (‘heartburn’ and ‘sour stomach’) and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) by decreasing the amount of acid produced by the stomach. Zantac was first approved for prescription use by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration in 1983, and in 1986 became the first drug to reach $1 billion in total sales. Zantac became available over-the-counter (“OTC”) (without a prescription) in 1996, and generic versions of Zantac began selling the following year. Despite prolific sales of generic Ranitidine, Zantac sales remain strong: in 2018, it was one of the top 10 antacid tablet brands in the U.S. with sales of almost $130 million.

In September of 2020, it was discovered that when Zantac and other generic Ranitidine products metabolize in the body they produce dangerously high quantities NDMA (N-nitrosodimethylamine), a potent carcinogen. This came to light when Valisure, an online pharmacy, advised the FDA, filing a Citizen’s Petition, that its scientific testing of Zantac and generic Ranitidine revealed that each tablet contained NDMA at levels thousands of times higher than the FDA’s “permissible daily intake limit” (read more below). Notably, Valisure is not just a pharmacy, it operates an ISO (International Standards Organization) accredited laboratory. The FDA considers this accreditation “one of the most important standards for calibration and testing laboratories” and it gives strong credibility to Valisure’s test results.

“There’s no acceptable cancer risk for a drug like this.”

– David Light (Valisure CEO)

Valisure further wrote, “Since 2002, the formation of NDMA by the reaction of DMA and a nitroso source (such as nitrite) has been well characterized in the scientific literature.” In other words, peer-reviewed scientific studies of Ranitidine and NDMA suggest that drugmakers knew — or at a bare minimum should have known — that Zantac (Ranitidine) use exposes users to dangerously high amounts of NDMA.

The dangers NDMA pose to human health are long-standing and well known. It was once used to make rocket fuel and other petroleum-based industrial products. The FDA has established a “permissible daily intake limit for … NDMA of 96 [nanograms].” But according to Valisure, Zantac (Ranitidine) has an NDMA content of between 2.5-2.8 million nanograms per tablet.

Since the release of Valisure’s report virtually all generic and brand name versions of Zantac have been withdrawn from the consumer market, with most manufacturers voluntarily recalling their products.

Our firm is currently investigating cases where individuals took Prescription and Brand Name Zantac – we are not accepting cases involving generic versions of Ranitidine – before being diagnosed with one of the following types of cancer:

• Bladder Cancer
• Stomach Cancer (including gastric cancer)
• Colorectal Cancer (including colon and rectal cancer)
• Intestinal Cancer
• Esophageal Cancer
• Kidney Cancer
• Liver Cancer
• Pancreatic Cancer
• Uterine Cancer

If you or someone you know has been diagnosed with one of these forms of cancer after taking Prescription or Brand Name Zantac, contact us online or call us at 1-866-252-3535.

Do not stop taking any medication without consulting your healthcare provider.

UPDATE:  (2020) – Johnson & Johnson has ‘phased-out’ sales of its talc-based baby powder in the United States. According to Carl Tobias, a University of Richmond professor who teaches product liability law, “This fences the litigation pretty neatly. It sets a date that says after this, the claims won’t fly because everyone is on notice about the talc allegations.”

READ MORE

If you or a loved one have used Johnson & Johnson’s Talc-based Baby Powder or “Shower-to-Shower” products and been diagnosed with Ovarian Cancer or Mesothelioma, contact us online or call 1-866-252-3535.

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UPDATE: (Feb. 2020) – On February 6th, a New Jersey jury awarded four plaintiffs $750 million in punitive damages and $37.2 million each in compensatory damages. The jury’s message to Johnson & Johnson was a powerful one.

All four plaintiffs plaintiffs used J&J’s talc-based Baby Powder and/or “Shower to Shower” products when they were much younger, and all four were subsequently diagnosed with Mesothelioma.

READ MORE

This follows several other substantial jury verdicts holding J&J liable for their talc-based products causing ovarian cancer and Mesothelioma: 

• April 2018:  $117 Million verdict linking J&J’s baby powder and the development of Mesothelioma.
• May 2018: $27 Million verdict linking J&J’s baby powder and the development of Mesothelioma.
• July 2018: $4.69 Billion verdict linking J&J’s baby powder and ovarian cancer in 22 women.
• September 2018: $417 Million verdict linking J&J’s baby powder to the plaintiff’s ovarian cancer.

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Reuters has published a remarkable report dubbed “Powder Keg” that is a MUST read: “J&J Knew for Decades that Asbestos lurked in its Baby Powder”.

A corresponding article by Reuters demonstrates just how far J&J has gone to put profits over people: “J&J Kept a Guiding Hand on Talc Safety Research”.

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Following the 1971 study that first detected a connection between talcum powder use and ovarian cancer, many more scientific studies have been published in prominent medical journals such as Cancer, The Lancet, and Oncology throughout the past decades. The National Cancer Institute and the International Union Against Cancer have published similar findings. A description of pivotal studies on the baby powder and ovarian cancer is set forth here:

• • 1970s An article on ovarian cancer caused by talcum powder in The Lancet warns, “The potentially harmful effects of talc . . . in the ovary . . . should not be ignored.”
  • 1992 The Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology publishes a study which finds that regular (weekly) use of baby powder increases a woman’s risk of developing ovarian cancer threefold.
  • 1997 A study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology affirms that perineal dusting of talcum powder contributes to the risk of cancer; it suggests talcum genital deodorant sprays contribute to cancer growth as well.
  • 2003 A meta-analysis, which compiles and reviews data from 16 previous studies, is published in Anticancer Research. Based on research with nearly 12,000 women, the study concludes that perineal baby powder use is associated with a 33% increase in ovarian cancer risk.
  • 2008 Harvard epidemiologist Dr. Margaret Gates reaffirms that weekly use of talcum powder for perineal dusting increases the risk of ovarian cancer by 33%. Dr. Gates also asserts that daily use of a product such as Johnson & Johnson’s Shower to Shower talcum powder increases the risk of ovarian cancer by 41%.
  • 2010 Dr. Gates, along with two other Harvard researchers, publishes a study in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention in which the role of talc particles in other endometrial cancer development was investigated. This study reinforces the notion that talc in baby powder is carcinogenic to humans.

Despite these original findings, companies like Johnson & Johnson continue to argue against the severity of the risks posed by talcum powder. It is simply another example of manufacturers placing their desire for profits before consumer safety by withholding information about the potential cancer risk from consumers for years.

If you or a loved one have used Johnson & Johnson’s Talc Products (Baby Powder or “Shower-to-Shower”) and been diagnosed with Ovarian Cancer or Mesothelioma, contact us online or call 1-866-252-3535.