Many ailments have logical-sounding diagnoses given their nature. But severe bowel diseases caused by the drug Accutane do not. That’s because Accutane is an acne treatment, yet it causes serious digestive disorders known as inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). These can include Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis (UC), both of which are incurable and lifelong. And both were caused by a pimple medicine.
This acne treatment is Accutane, which has been prescribed and sold to 13 million people globally since its 1982 introduction. Many became IBD victims, forced to endure horrible cramping and blood in their stools without having any idea that Accutane was the culprit. But now the news is out, via the mass media and court proceedings. Now Americans know that serious bowel diseases can be caused by Accutane, once known as a “miracle drug” for acne, but really more of a misery drug.
While Accutane can clear up pimples and other acne, it also can trigger an IBD that’s so severe that some victims have had to have their colon or part of their intestines removed. Indeed, IBD can involve lifelong abdominal pain which can’t be cured, only treated. Yet people need not have suffered, since Roche knew such Accutane side effects existed yet sold the drug anyway, for billions in profits.
Accutane is just the brand name of the orally taken medicine. The real problem is its potent active ingredient called Isotretinoin. Swiss-based Roche was aware that this drug could cause serious side effects, yet failed to warn unsuspecting consumers. And that’s why victims are winning in court, with $56 million in jury verdicts so far in Accutane lawsuits.
Some victims may have taken generic Accutane, which has been available since 2002. Generics include Sotret, Claravis and Amnesteem, all of which also have Isotretinoin, which lowers oils released by glands and raises the body’s Vitamin A. While the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued warnings about Accutane and calls it “potentially dangerous,” the drug is still sold in generic form. Roche removed Accutane from the market in 2009.
Roche should have acted far sooner. Instead, many are suffering Crohn’s disease, which impacts all of the intestinal tract, causing bleeding, inflammation and cramping. Accutane and its generics also can cause ulcerative colitis, ulcerating and inflaming the colon’s inner lining. Whether it’s UC or Crohn’s disease, an Accutane side effect can change people’s lives forever, causing pain, distress and embarrassment.
Yet victims can counter with an Accutane lawsuit showing that Roche was negligent in selling the defective drug. An Accutane lawsuit can be waged throughout America in all 50 states with help from attorney group Accutane-Lawsuit-Lawyers.Com. Their free case review on their website or toll-free number of 1-800-339-0606 can link victims to a fitting defective drug attorney for their state and help launch their economic recovery for medical bills, lost wages and pain and suffering.
Roche can afford to pay its victims, since Roche earned billions of dollars while selling Accutane. Because Roche was aware of its side effects and did not alert consumers, Roche is liable in lawsuits against it, as verdicts so far have shown. Such verdicts can continue to be sought by the experienced law firm group known as Accutane Lawsuit Lawyer: Accutane-Lawsuit-Lawyer.Com.