Valsartan Lawsuits

As of October 2024, there were 1,270 active valsartan lawsuits pending in multidistrict litigation before Chief U.S. District Judge Renee M. Bumb of the U.S. District Court District of New Jersey. The lawsuits allege defendants are liable for making or distributing a drug they knew had potentially cancer-causing contaminants. Plaintiffs are seeking justice and compensation for damages.

Because trials have not started, there are no jury verdicts yet. No out-of-court settlements have been made public.

Plaintiffs are mostly people diagnosed with cancer or families of patients who died of cancer. They attribute their cancers to carcinogenic exposure from contaminated valsartan. The hypertension drug was recalled in 2018 after several batches of valsartan were found to be contaminated with N-nitrosodimethylamine. The chemical has caused cancer in laboratory animals and is a probable human carcinogen. It can also cause liver damage.

Multiple studies indicate people exposed to NDMA have an increased risk of developing cancer. A Swedish study involving 61,433 women, for example, linked the intake of NDMA-contaminated valsartan to a higher risk of gastric cancer. In France, research suggested a higher probability of developing liver cancer among 986,126 users of NDMA-tainted valsartan. Such studies are a foundational piece of valsartan lawsuits.

Although nitrosamines such as NDMA are present in other items consumers often encounter, such as smoked and cured meats and malt beverages, the levels are not usually high enough to pose much of a risk. The level of NDMA found in the contaminated valsartan tablets, however, exceeded strict federal limits.

According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, humans can safely consume 0.096 micrograms of NDMA per day. The recalled valsartan pills contained anywhere from 3 to 177 times the level deemed safe for human ingestion. Some testing revealed levels of up to 20 micrograms, which is more than 208 times the safe level of NDMA.

Cancer and Wrongful Death Claims

People diagnosed with cancer after taking valsartan faced expensive medical treatments and lost wages, having to take from work while sick and undergoing treatment. People also seek compensation for pain and suffering. Some plaintiffs are asking for punitive damages against the defendants.

Plaintiff Edwin Childs from Queens, New York started taking valsartan in 2012 and was diagnosed with colon cancer about four years later. He contends his condition is the result of his use of the contaminated blood pressure drug.

In one wrongful death claim, the daughter of Peggy Watts of Manchester, Tennessee, is suing Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. for the 2018 cancer-related death of her mother. Watts had taken prescription valsartan since 2014 and received a colorectal cancer diagnosis in 2018.

If you took valsartan or a combination medication that included valsartan and were later diagnosed with cancer, you may be eligible to file a valsartan lawsuit for compensation. A valsartan lawyer can assess your eligibility and examine any useful evidence you might have, including prescription bottles and tests for toxic contamination.

An individual state’s statute of limitations applies. This defines a strict timeline for when you can file a product liability claim. States have different statutes of limitations. Your lawyer will assess if your case is within timeline eligibility.