According to allegations raised in a recently filed product liability lawsuit, Truvada side effects caused a woman to develop bone fractures and the need for hip replacement surgery, after the HIV drug’s harsh chemicals caused death of cells in her bones.
The complaint (PDF) was filed by Vanessa L. Naisha in Delaware Superior Court on July 11, naming the makers of Truvada, Gilead Sciences, as the defendant.
Truvada (emtricitabine/tenofovir disoproxil fumarate) was approved in 2004, for the treatment of HIV and it is also used as a PrEP HIV drug, to prevent the spread of the disease. Truvada belongs to a class of HIV drugs that contain the antiviral tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) drugs, which is also found in other blockbuster treatments sold by Gilead, including Viread, Atripla, Complera and Stribild, which have collectively generated tens of billions in profits for the drug maker.
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Kidney and bone injuries linked to the HIV drugs Truvada, Viread, Atripla, Complera and Stribild may have been avoided.
Learn More About this Lawsuit See If You Qualify Now >According to allegations raised in the Truvada lawsuit, Naisha was prescribed the drug soon after it hit the market, for the treatment of HIV. However, in 2009 she began to suffer from loss of balance and excruciating hip pain, according to the complaint.
By 2010, both of Naisha’s hips had failed, and she underwent hip replacement surgery for both hips during 2011. She was diagnosed as suffering advanced avascular necrosis; meaning the tissue cells in her bones were dying. This usually only happens due to infection from tuberculosis, extreme temperatures, radiation or chemical exposure.
“In 2018, Plaintiff learned via television that Gilead Sciences failed to warn consumers that Truvada contained toxicity that caused bone injuries such as osteopenia, osteoporosis, and bone fractures,” the lawsuit states. “The FDA claimed the company sales representatives had violated the law by giving doctors and patients false and misleading information regarding TDF’s side effects.”
She presents claims of design defect, failure to warn, breach of warranty, failure to comply with the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, and deceptive marketing strategies.
Gilead faces a growing number of individual HIV drug lawsuits, which allege the drug maker knew or should have known that TDF drugs posed an increased risk of bone fractures and kidney problems, yet failed to warn consumers and the medical community.
The complaints also indicate that Gilead knew that an alternative antiviral, known as tenofovir enofovir alafenamide (‘TAF’), could result in much less toxic doses, while providing the same effectiveness. However, Gilead decided to shelve TAF in 2004, as part of a coordinated effort to increase profits by extending patent protection. Gilead began selling TAF-drugs in 2015, promoting it as a safer alternative as generic versions of Truvada and other TDF drugs were beginning to be introduced.
Several groups of plaintiffs have also filed Truvada class action lawsuits, alleging that Gilead and some other drug makers purposefully price-fixed TDF medications in the United States, capitalizing on the life-saving need for the HIV drugs to increase profits.
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4 Comments
TroySeptember 6, 2022 at 6:46 am
I am 41 and was on both Truvada and Viread for many years. I was a very active person who never had bone problems before. Then one day I woke up and could barely walk. I was diagnosed with avascular necrosis of the femoral head. My doctor thinks it's a direct cause from the meds. The pain is horrible. I can't work. I can't do hardly any of the things I used to enjoy.
DamonAugust 22, 2022 at 3:45 pm
So I was diagnosed with HIV in 2013. Was first placed on Truvada and one other medication which I took religiously for a number of years. A change in insurance and where I worked caused me to see another doctor where I was placed on Complera. Now I am on Biktarvy and have been on this medication for about a year now. As of about three months ago, I began to have hip pain. I have now seen a Ch[Show More]So I was diagnosed with HIV in 2013. Was first placed on Truvada and one other medication which I took religiously for a number of years. A change in insurance and where I worked caused me to see another doctor where I was placed on Complera. Now I am on Biktarvy and have been on this medication for about a year now. As of about three months ago, I began to have hip pain. I have now seen a Chiropractor and a Hip Specialist and have had an MRI that has concluded that I am in stage 3 of avascular necrosis in both hips. I have another appointment with another hip specialist to determine if I am a viable candidate for a decompression procedure or else I face a double hip replacement. I am 41 years old.
KatNovember 7, 2021 at 12:45 am
My son is only 29 he took truvada to Prevent HIV he was not in a high risk group but doctor gave it to him anyway. 3 years later he now has stage 3 and 4 avascular necrosis in both hips and has to undergo full hip replacements. We are devastated he was a healthy young active person . Please if you know anyone taking this please beware Truvada should not be marketed for prevention it is ruining l[Show More]My son is only 29 he took truvada to Prevent HIV he was not in a high risk group but doctor gave it to him anyway. 3 years later he now has stage 3 and 4 avascular necrosis in both hips and has to undergo full hip replacements. We are devastated he was a healthy young active person . Please if you know anyone taking this please beware Truvada should not be marketed for prevention it is ruining lives.,
PatrickJuly 30, 2020 at 10:17 pm
I was 53 years old and in extraordinarily good physical condition. I was on Truvada for just over three years and literaly woke up one morning crippled. Not until afterwards did I associate any of it with a certain stiffness I had been experiencing upon getting out of my car. Because it was a new car, I thought something in the seat design was responsible and began using a pillow, That seemed [Show More]I was 53 years old and in extraordinarily good physical condition. I was on Truvada for just over three years and literaly woke up one morning crippled. Not until afterwards did I associate any of it with a certain stiffness I had been experiencing upon getting out of my car. Because it was a new car, I thought something in the seat design was responsible and began using a pillow, That seemed to help somewhat until, as I say, I woke up one morning crippled. An MRI revealed that I had bilateral avascular necrosis--a condition that usually afflicts people with a history of cocaine abuse or the elderly, typically women, with osteoporosis. I am currently awaiting a double hip replacement.