Actemra is an arthritis medication that is linked to hundreds of deaths and serious side effects like heart attack, stroke, lung disease, and pancreatitis — but patients were not warned.
What You Can Do & How We Can Help
The Schmidt Firm, PLLC is currently accepting Actemra induced injury cases in all 50 states. If you or somebody you know has been injured, you should contact our lawyers immediately for a free case consultation. Please use the form below to contact our Defective Drug Litigation Group or call toll free 24 hours a day at (866) 920-0753.
What is Actemra?
Actemra® (tocilizumab) is an injection for adults with chronic inflammation due to rheumatoid arthritis (RA) or Giant Cell Arteritis (GCA). Actemra treats these conditions by blocking substances that cause inflammation. It is made by Genentech/Roche and gained FDA approval in 2010.
Actemra Linked to Hundreds of Deaths
Roche’s rheumatoid arthritis drug Actemra has been linked to hundreds of patient deaths due to undisclosed cardiovascular side and lung disease, according to a STAT news investigation.
Investigators “found clear evidence” that the risk of heart attacks or strokes “were as high or higher for Actemra patients than for patients taking some competing drugs.” The difference is that Actemra does not have warning labels for those side effects, unlike other medications for rheumatoid arthritis.
Actemra Lawsuits
Our lawyers are investigating Actemra lawsuits against Roche for failing to warn about the risk of heart attack, stroke, and other severe side effects. Before Actemra was approved in the U.S., it was linked to 15 deaths and 200 severe side effects in clinical trials in Japan.
What is the problem?
Investigators with STAT identified 1,128 reports of Actemra patients who died, as well as more than 13,500 side-effect reports. Hundreds of those users died of heart failure and other side effects that are not on the label for Actemra.
According to investigators:
“[STAT] found clear evidence that the risks of heart attacks, strokes, heart failure, and other conditions were as high or higher for Actemra patients than for patients taking some competing drugs.”
Those competing drugs — Enbrel, Humira and Remicade — all carry warnings about cardiovascular side effects. According to investigators, “FDA should immediately consider warnings for heart failure and pancreatitis.”
Actemra Linked to 50% Higher Risk of Heart Attack
In a head-to-head study, patients on Actemra had 50% more heart attacks and strokes vs. patients on Enbrel. The label on Enbrel prominently warns against prescribing it to patients with cardiovascular disease because Enbrel may cause or worsen heart problems. The label on Actemra does not.
Japan Reported 15 Actemra Deaths in 2009
Concerns about Actemra emerged in 2009, before it was approved in the U.S., when 15 people died in a study of 5,000 patients in Japan. Another 221 of those patients developed severe side effects like pneumonia and high fever, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Is Actemra the Next Vioxx?
STAT news compared Actemra to Vioxx, another arthritis drug that was pulled off the market in 2004 after it was shown to significantly boost the risk of heart attack and stroke. Like Actemra, deadly cardiovascular side effects of Vioxx were not on the label. They were not discovered until after Vioxx was sold for several years and killed 60,000 people. Enbrel and other drugs for arthritis have prominent warnings about heart attack risks — Actemra does not.
Actemra Side Effects
Actemra is associated with severe side effects, such as:
- Heart failure
- Heart attack
- Stroke
- Pancreatitis
- Interstitial lung disease
- Infection
- Gastrointestinal perforation
- Death
Over 5% of people who use Actemra will develop these common side effects:
- Upper respiratory tract infections
- Runny nose
- Headache
- High blood pressure
- Increased ALT levels in blood tests
- Injection-site reactions
Do I have a Actemra Lawsuit?
The Schmidt Firm, PLLC is currently accepting Actemra induced injury cases in all 50 states. If you or somebody you know has been injured, you should contact our lawyers immediately for a free case consultation. Please use the form below to contact our Defective Drug Litigation Group or call toll free 24 hours a day at (866) 920-0753.
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