Valsartan is a blood pressure medication drug produced and distributed by various generic manufacturers including Major Pharmaceuticals, Mylan Pharmaceuticals, Solco Healthcare, Teva Pharmaceuticals, Torrent Pharmaceuticals, and others. Valsartan is approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a treatment for high blood pressure in adults and children age six and up. It’s also approved to treat heart failure and to reduce the risk of death in patients who recently had a heart attack. Valsartan is one of a class of hypertension medications known as angiotensin II receptor agonists. These drugs reduce the constriction of blood vessels, allowing blood to flow more freely. It is available as a stand-alone medication or valsartan HCTZ, which combines with the diuretic hydrochlorothiazide.
In May 2018, the European Medicines Agency announced that a potentially dangerous impurity had been discovered in valsartan medication sourced from Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceuticals, a Chinese pharmaceutical manufacturer. The impurity found in it is N-nitrosodimethylamine, or NDMA. NDMA is classified by several healthcare authorities as a “probable human carcinogen”—a substance capable of causing cancer.
This carcinogenic substance has been linked to serious injuries such as an increased risk of the following cancers:
- Liver Cancer
- Colon Cancer
- Intestinal Cancer
- Stomach Cancer
- Lower Esophageal Cancer
- Prostate Cancer
- Pancreatic Cancer
- Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma
- Leukemia
- Multiple Myeloma
Call a Valsartan Lawyer Who Will Fight For Your Rights
In an effort to protect patients from the risk of cancer, national regulators across Europe began recalling medications that contain potentially tainted valsartan. Health authorities in the U.K. did the same, urging pharmacies to pull all medications from their shelves. In July 2018, the FDA announced that it had asked three manufacturers of generic valsartan medication to voluntarily recall it from the U.S. market. Pharmacists are asked to take the affected medications out of their inventories and return them to the manufacturers.
If you developed cancer after taking valsartan in 2015 or later, you may have a legal claim against the drug’s manufacturers. Patients who have been diagnosed with colorectal, esophageal, intestinal, kidney, liver, pancreatic, prostate, or stomach cancer may be in a position to file a lawsuit.
Filing a valsartan lawsuit may help patients and their families recover compensation for medical expenses, lost income and earning capacity, as well as for less tangible harms like pain, mental anguish, and the harm done to family relationships.
Contact the Law Offices of Chhabra & Gibbs Today
CONTACT US TODAY IF YOU HAVE BEEN HARMED BY VALSARTAN. YOU MAY QUALIFY FOR COMPENSATION
Chhabra & Gibbs, P.A.
Aggressive Workers' Comp & Personal Injury Attorneys