LAFAYETTE — A widower is suing a number of pharmaceutical companies, alleging their negligence caused his wife's death.
Pedro Cardenas, individually, and as the proposed representative of the estate of Betty Cardenas, filed a lawsuit May 13, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana against Takeda Pharmaceuticals America Inc., Takeda Pharmaceuticals USA Inc., Takeda Development Center Americas Inc., Takeda California Inc., Takeda Pharmaceuticals International Inc., Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. and Eli Lilly & Co., alleging they violated the Consumer Protection Law as well as negligence, failure to warn, design defect, breach of express and implied warranty, fraudulent concealment and loss of consortium.
According to the complaint, Betty Cardenas ingested the drug Actos between approximately 2006 until 2013. As a legal and proximate result of using Actos, the suit says, she was diagnosed with bladder cancer in October 2015 and died due to metastatic urothelial carcinoma Dec. 4, 2015.
The plaintiff alleges the defendants researched, designed, developed, licensed, manufactured, packed, labeled, marketed, distributed pioglitazone-containing medicines including Actos, failed to conduct complete and proper testing of Actos, and failed to provide adequate warnings to health care providers that there is a reasonable association of Actos to bladder cancer.
Pedro Cardenas seeks a trial by jury, compensation for all damages, attorney fees, legal costs and other relief the court deems proper. He is represented by attorney Dr. Shezad Malik of Dr. Shezad Malik Law Firm PC in Dallas.
U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana Case number 6:16-cv-00667