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The Valsartan lawsuits claim that numerous batches of Valsartan have been found to be contaminated with the cancer-causing substances N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), N-Nitrosodiethylamine (NDEA), and/or N-Methylnitrosobutyric acid (NMBA).
Our law firm is accepting clients who took valsartan and have been diagnosed with stomach, prostate, colorectal, liver, pancreatic, intestinal, esophageal, or blood cancers (such as non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, leukemia, and multiple myeloma).
We have been handling lawsuits against drug companies since 1955. Each year we teach 1,500 attorneys how to successfully handle these cases. We are listed in Best Lawyers in America and The National Trial Lawyers Hall of Fame.
Our Valsartan lawyers know it is important for you to stay informed about the latest developments in the Valsartan lawsuits. Visit this page for regular updates.
As of July 2024, there are 1,257 active Valsartan lawsuits pending in multidistrict litigation before Chief U.S. District Judge Renee M. Bumb in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.
In preparation for the June 27, 2024, case management session, the plaintiffs in the Valsartan lawsuit requested that the defendants furnish the financial data required for punitive damages. The plaintiffs’ attorneys learned on February 20, 2024, that punitive damages would not be awarded in a separate trial by the defense. Thus, on February 23, 2024, the plaintiffs promptly requested financial documents.
This financial data is critical for determining punitive damages, as mandated by the New Jersey Punitive Damages Act.
According to the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, 1,248 cases are pending in the Valsartan class action MDL, as of June 1, 2024.
After Judge Robert B. Kugler retired, U.S. District Judge Renee M. Bumb took over the Valsartan litigation.
Two retired judges were appointed by the MDL to mediate a negotiated settlement for unsettled individual Valsartan cases. Reportedly, multiple individual cases have reached settlement agreements.
The MDL judge decided before the bellwether trial that drug labels saying “valsartan” promised that these generic blood pressure medications were safe. Still, the argument reamins whether this promise was broken because of alleged contamination with a cancer-causing substance.
The MDL Judge made a new schedule for the case, changing important dates and deadlines. According to the new order, challenges to whether expert opinions can be used as evidence (called Daubert challenges) must be filed by the first week of March.
The MDL judge decided that a crucial defense expert can’t testify that Valsartan contaminated with NDMA wasn’t “adulterated.” Also, the defense pharmacology expert won’t be allowed to testify about important subjects.
Our law firm is investigating cases for individuals who were taking any of the Valsartan medications contaminated with N-nitrosodimethylamine and have experienced any of the following injuries:
Several drug companies have voluntarily recalled their blood pressure and heart medication that contains valsartan after it was discovered that the medication might have become contaminated in the Chinese and India manufacturing plants it was being produced.
The companies involved include Actavis; A-S Medication Solutions; AvKARE; Bryant Rank Prepack; Camber Pharmaceuticals; Hetero Labs, Inc.; HJ Harkins Company; Major Pharmaceuticals; Mylan Pharmaceuticals; Northwind Pharmaceuticals; NuCare Pharmaceuticals; Preferred Pharmaceuticals; Prinston Pharmaceutical; RemedyRepack Inc.; Solco Healthcare; Teva Pharmaceuticals; and Torrent Pharmaceuticals Limited.
A complete list of the recalled products can be found at angiotensin II receptor blockers recall list.
The primary legal issue is that Valsartan (a generic version of Diovan) might have become contaminated with the chemicals N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), N-Nitrosodiethylamine (NDEA), and/or N-Methylnitrosobutyric acid (NMBA) if produced by Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceuticals or Hetero Labs Limited. Potential injuries include liver damage, tumors, and cancer.
Valsartan is an angiotensin II receptor blocker (ARB) used to treat hypertension (high blood pressure), recent heart attacks, and heart failure.
Certain batches of valsartan produced by the Chinese company Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceuticals and the India company Hetero Labs Limited have been contaminated with N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA). This chemical is a known carcinogen.
Short-term exposure to NDMA can cause liver damage (such as liver fibrosis and scarring). Long-term exposure can increase the risk of stomach, prostate, colorectal, liver, pancreatic, intestinal, esophageal, or blood cancers (such as non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, leukemia, and multiple myeloma).
According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), NDMA is not currently produced in pure form or commercially used in the United States, except for research purposes.
It was formerly used in production of liquid rocket fuel, antioxidants, additives for lubricants, and softeners for copolymers.
Symptoms of NDMA overexposure include headaches; fever; nausea; jaundice; vomiting; abdominal cramps; enlarged liver; reduced function of the liver, kidneys and lungs; and dizziness.
In February 2019, an MDL was established for Valsartan in federal court in New Jersey. Our law firm is serving as co-lead counsel for the MDL. As of May 16, 2022, more than 1,000 lawsuits were pending in the MDL.
The creation of an MDL is the first step in the litigation process that starts the settlement negotiations. Once the MDL has been formed, discovery of the facts and trials can begin, which then leads to serious settlement discussions.
In May 2018, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) began reviewing medicines containing valsartan that was supplied by Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceuticals. The review started after the company detected NDMA in the valsartan it was supplying to manufacturers in the European Union.
In July 2018, the FDA announced that three companies were voluntarily recalling their medications containing valsartan that was supplied by the Chinese company Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceuticals. The recall occurred after the company determined the presence of NDMA in the valsartan. The FDA also provided guidance to manufacturers regarding how to properly test their valsartan for possible NDMA contamination.
It’s believed that the Chinese company’s production of valsartan could have become contaminated with NDMA starting in 2012 after the company changed its manufacturing process.
In August 2018 , the FDA announced that certain batches of valsartan produced by India company Hetero Labs Limited and sold under the label Camber Pharmaceuticals also will be recalled because of the presence of NDMA.
In August 2018, Torrent Pharmaceuticals announced the voluntary recall of 14 lots of Valsartan/Amlodipine/HCTZ tablets due to the presence of NDMA.
In November 2018, Teva Pharmaceuticals voluntarily recalled all lots of amlodipine/valsartan combination tablets and amlodipine/valsartan/hydrochlorothiazide combination tablets after NDEA was detected in an active pharmaceutical ingredient manufactured by Mylan India.
Since November 2018, numerous lots of Valsartan/Amlodipine/HCTZ tablets have been recalled for various forms of contamination with NDMA, NDEA, and/or NMBA.
Valsartan is an angiotensin II receptor blocker (ARB) used to treat hypertension (high blood pressure), recent heart attacks, and heart failure. The medication is usually available in tablets containing valsartan 40 mg, 80 mg, 160 mg, or 320 mg.
The drug was created by pharmaceutical company Novartis and approved by the FDA in 1996. Today, the drug is produced by numerous companies.
Valsartan should be discontinued upon pregnancy as it can result in fetal toxicity, and cause injury and death to the developing fetus.
Additionally, Valsartan should be used with caution when a patient shows signs of hereditary angioedema, volume depletion, severe congestive heart failure (CHF), hyperkalemia, hepatic or renal impairment, aortic or mitral valve stenosis.
“My best estimate sitting here today is I expect that we will have approximately 2,000 personal-injury cases on file in the next two years,” Daniel Nigh, who has filed 12 such lawsuits so far, told judges at a conference in the U.S. District Court in New Jersey last month, according to a transcript. To read more, click Bloomberg Drug Lawsuits
The valsartan recall came as little surprise to Massoud Motamed, a former inspector with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). More than a year before the notices went out, Motamed had tried to sound the alarm on what he flagged as potential systemic problems at two facilities in China and India that produce the active ingredients in generic valsartan and other blood pressure medications. To read more, click NBC Tainted Drugs
The US Food and Drug Administration has again expanded the list of recalled medications that contain valsartan, used as a component in a set of drugs to treat heart failure and blood pressure. To read more, click CNN Continued Recall
The FDA action came after 22 other countries issued recalls involving 2,300 valsartan batches sent to Germany, Norway, Finland, Sweden, Hungary, the Netherlands, Austria, Ireland, Bulgaria, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, France, Poland, Croatia, Lithuania, Greece, Canada, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bahrain and Malta. To read more, click CNN Recall Knowledge
Three companies that sell the generic drug, valsartan, in the United States agreed to recall it after the F.D.A. said it might be tainted by N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), considered a probable human carcinogen. To read more, click New York Times
This website is a comprehensive list of the various announcements by the FDA regarding the Valsartan contamination issues. To read more, click FDA Updated Valsartan Recall
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is alerting health care professionals and patients of a voluntary recall of several drug products containing the active ingredient valsartan, used to treat high blood pressure and heart failure. This recall is due to an impurity, N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), which was found in the recalled products. However, not all products containing valsartan are being recalled. To read more, click FDA Safety Announcement
The FDA’s latest testing of products shows an additional unexpected impurity in three lots of Torrent Pharmaceuticals’ recalled valsartan drug products. This second impurity, N-Nitrosodiethylamine (NDEA) is a known animal and suspected human carcinogen. To read more, click FDA Valsartan Update
The results of this study do not imply a markedly increased short term overall risk of cancer in users of valsartan contaminated with NDMA. However, uncertainty persists about single cancer outcomes, and studies with longer follow-up are needed to assess long term cancer risk. To read more, click British Medical Journal
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