Journal of the National Cancer Institute Advance Access originally published online on December 11, 2007
JNCI Journal of the National Cancer Institute 2007 99(24):1828-1835; doi:10.1093/jnci/djm285
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© Oxford University Press 2007.
NEWS |
So Far, Victories Are Few as Breast Cancer Patients Sue Wyeth Over Hormone Therapy
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There is no question that use of combination hormone therapy is associated with an increased risk of developing breast cancer in the population—that was clear in 2002 when the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) study was halted. But whether the hormone treatment can be proven to have caused cancer in an individual woman who develops the disease is now being played out in courts around the country.
As of November, the pharmaceutical company Wyeth is listed as a defendant on 5,300 cases filed by 7,900 plaintiffs. The company manufactured the best-selling hormone replacement agents Premarin, an estrogen supplement, and Prempro, which contains estrogen and progestin. Other companies such as Pfizer and Upjohn, which produced different brands of hormone replacement therapy (HRT), are also being sued, but as the largest maker of these drugs, Wyeth has become the prime target for personal injury and drug product liability attorneys.
No one knows how
Warnings on Labels
Taking Research to Court
Researcher Forced To Testify