Hormone Therapy On Trial: Product Liability Lawsuit Won Against Wyeth.

Alison Mynick, RN, Esq.

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Mary Daniel of Arkansas took on the Pennsylvania drug company Wyeth Pharmaceutical. Wyeth manufactures estrogen pills prescribed by doctors to replace a loss of estrogen. Ms. Daniel claimed that Wyeth's "Prempro" hormone pills caused her breast cancer. However, a key question in her case was: How specific does a drug company need to be about warning consumers of a possible side effect such as breast cancer?

The Philadelphia jury, awarding Ms. Daniel $1.5 million, seems to have answered: More specific than Wyeth thought.

In cases against a drug manufacturer, Maine plaintiffs must show that their injury is related to a manufacturer's failure to protect them through proper testing, proper manufacture or providing adequate information about risks associated with the medicine.