Avandia Lawsuit Settlements Moving Too Slow For Judge

As drug maker GlaxoSmithKline agrees to settle more than 20,000 lawsuits alleging its type-2 diabetes medicine Avandia causes heart attacks, the makers of Actos, a similar diabetes medicine, are preparing for a court battle of their own.

Already Glaxo has paid $700 million to resolve more than 15,000 claims in the first round of Avandia lawsuits. The company also paid $3 billion in government fines over claims it illegally marketed its drugs, including Avandia.

Glaxo, which is the United Kingdom’s largest drug manufacturer, will now be reaching deeper into its pockets to settle an additional 20,000 claims. The terms in the latest round of settlements were not disclosed.

At the same time, hundreds of diabetes patients have already sued Takeda Pharmaceuticals regarding claims that Actos causes bladder cancer.

Both Avandia (rosiglitazone) and Actos (pioglitazone) are prescribed to treat type-2 diabetes and come from the same drug family, thiazolidinediones (TZDs). They work in a similar manner, by making cells more receptive to insulin.

Glaxo Settles 20,000 Avandia Claims

The problems for Avandia started in mid 2000, when a study revealed the drug increased heart attack risks by as much as 43 percent. Despite that, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) took only small steps to protect the public, by adding a black-box warning to the drug. About the same time, the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) ran a study that said rosiglitazone and pioglitazone carry similar heart-failure risks. By 2010, the company agreed to stop promoting Avandia worldwide and limited sales in the United States.

On February 1, 2012, the 20,000 Avandia claims were settled just as the cases were set to go to court.  Also, a judge set a 75-day deadline to resolve 85 percent of the remaining cases through mediation, but it’s not clear if the terms have been met, Bloomberg News reported. If there aren’t enough settlements, cases will be scheduled for trial.

Actos Lawsuits Revving Up And  Preparing For Trial

As attorneys work to hammer out the details of Avandia settlements, Actos bladder cancer patients are gearing up for their own lawsuits. In 2010, the first five years of a 10-year study revealed that Actos patients had an increased risk of bladder cancer. Since then, a black-box warning about bladder cancer risks have been added to the drug. And it has been pulled from shelves in several European countries.

Today, more than 100 Actos bladder cancer cases have been consolidated before a federal judge in Louisiana. Authorities predict that thousands of cases could be filed.  The first meeting between the judge and attorneys is scheduled for March 22, 2012.\