California Court Restores Pancreatic Cancer Lawsuits

Introduction

In an opinion filed on November 6, a California Court of Appeal, 2nd District reinstated product liability cases against a group of drugmakers sued for providing an inadequate warning about the risk of developing pancreatic cancer linked to type-2 diabetes drugs.

The defendants who must face pancreatic cancer lawsuits are Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp, the maker of Janumet and Januvia; Novo Nordisk Inc, the manufacturer of Victoza; and AstraZeneca’s Amylin Pharmaceuticals. In November 2015, Judge Battaglia granted a summary judgment in favor of the defendants following a preemption protocol, dismissing all the cases which were a part of MDL 2452. The plaintiff attorney filed an appeal to the Federal Appeals Court that the Judge misinterpreted the U.S. Supreme Court preemption law, responding to which the court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs.

Januvia, Janumet, Byetta, and Victoza are popular type 2 diabetes drugs which have been reported to cause dangerous side effects like pancreatic cancer and pancreatitis. As of September 2018, there were 948 cases pending in the federal MDL presided by Judge Battaglia.

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