Lawsuit Alleges Byetta Caused Fatal Liver and Pancreatic Cancer
Published: January 13th, 2010 • One Comment
A lawsuit has been filed against Eli Lilly & Co. and Amylin Pharmaceuticals by a woman who says side effects of Byetta caused her husbands death from liver and pancreatic cancer.
The Byetta lawsuit was filed in Duval County Court in Florida by Shadim Salem, the widow of Fred J. Salem, who died in January 2008, about six months after he started receiving Byetta injections according to a report by Courthouse News Service. Shadim Salem has accused Byetta’s manufacturers of negligence, failure to warn, and breach of warranty, saying the diabetes drug caused both liver and pancreatic cancer in her husband.
Byetta (exenatide) is a type 2 diabetes drug that is used to control blood sugar levels. It is part of a class of medications known as incretin mimetics, which imitate natural hormones that lower blood glucose levels. Last month, the FDA expanded the use of Byetta to a stand-alone diabetes treatment, but insisted that warnings about the risk of pancreatitis from Byetta be added to the label and will require additional studies.
Salem’s lawsuit says that Byetta’s manufacturers overstated the drug’s benefits while downplaying its risks, including the risk of pancreatitis. She is seeking medical and funeral expenses, damages for loss of consortium and other damages.
In April 2009, Amylin dismissed a potential link between Byetta and cancer, after a similar diabetes drug in the same class of medications was linked to a potential risk of thyroid cancer.
Amylin and Eli Lilly already face a number of Byetta injury lawsuits involving allegations that the drug makers failed to adequately warn about the risk of pancreatitis and kidney failure from the diabetes drug.
Comment by Judy on 14 January 2010:
My husband developed pancreatic cancer after pancreatitis caused by Byetta. He died in April 09.