Truvada Lawsuits

People with HIV who took the tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) drug Truvada may have experienced kidney disease or a severe weakening of their bones which could have resulted in bone breaks or other injuries. If you or a loved one took Truvada or another drug made by manufacturer Gilead Sciences Inc., you may be entitled to financial compensation, and the product liability experts at the Cambridge, Mass. firm of Altman & Altman LLP can help you get started on a claim today.

Gilead may have know about the potential dangerous side effects of their popular TDF medication – which is used by people with various diseases, including hepatitis B, HIV and AIDS to manage symptoms associated with those diseases – as far back as 2001, but failed to properly warn people about this possibility or follow up with their testing of an allegedly less harmful alternative drug.

Truvada is one of several types of TDF medications used as antiretroviral drugs, which are intended to slow the progression of diseases such as HIV, AIDS and hepatitis. These drugs, with the active ingredient tenofovir disproxil, have been heralded as enormously beneficial for the patients that have relied on them after being diagnosed with such life-changing illnesses.

However, in the case of Gilead, it has become apparent that the drug manufacturer may not have had the best interest of these people at heart in producing or selling the drug Truvada. Despite promising research on a less toxic active ingredient, known as TAF, Gilead allegedly shuttered research on the drug until its patent on Truvada expired, earning them billions of dollars every year while knowingly allowing potentially millions of patients take a more dangerous version of a drug with the same intended effect.

The side effects of individuals who have taken Truvada can range in severity but are all serious in nature. They include Osteoporosis (a weakening of bones causing brittleness and an increased likelihood of breaks) and renal issues, including full kidney failure. As many as 20,000 people with HIV have been allegedly diagnosed with kidney disease after taking TDF-based drugs, and 6,000 bone breaks have allegedly been linked to the ingredient.

All potential side effects of TDF drugs, such as Truvada, include:

• Bone fractures
• Osteopenia – weakening of bones
• Osteoporosis – weakening of bones to the point of increased risk of fracture
• Fanconi syndrome – a rare kidney disorder
• Acute kidney injury or acute renal failure
• Chronic kidney disease or declining kidney function

There is no excuse for a drug manufacturer sitting on a potentially less harmful version of such an important type of medication despite knowing the dangers of the drug currently on the market. If Gilead was aware of the potential dangers of Truvada but failed to adequately warn individuals who rely on the drug of its potential side effects, this constitutes a failure to warn violation which could result in significant financial compensation to those who were harmed as a result of taking the drug.

Potentially millions of people in the country took Truvada and other TDF drugs in the nearly 20 years since they allegedly knew of its harmful side effects, meaning that sizable settlements can be imminent for those who get involved in class action lawsuits or individualized claims against the drug’s manufacturer.

We understand that facing up against a large, multibillion biotechnical corporation can be intimidating, but at Altman & Altman we can assure you that our experienced attorneys – with over 50 years of experience advocating on behalf of our clients – we can handle any case, no matter the size or ultimate implications.

Drug manufacturers have a huge responsibility to ensure that the drugs they produce are safe for consumption and, if side effects are unavoidable as a nature of the type of drug, that those side effects are clearly described so that people can make informed decisions before taking them.

Contact us online or call for a free consultation to discuss your experience with Truvada or any other TDF-related drug today at 617-492-3000 or toll-free at 800-481-6199. We are available 24/7.