Humira defect lawyers file lawsuit against Abbott in Texas state court

Jul 30 2011

Humira defect lawyers filed a lawsuit against Abbott Laboratories in Texas state court claiming Abbott's blockbuster drug, Humira, caused a life-threatening disease, leukemia.

"Eleven year-old Bo Anderson was prescribed Humira for a skin condition, psoriasis.  After taking the drug for approximately ten months, Bo's parents noticed unusual bruising covering his body while on a family vacation," says drug defect attorney Andy Vickery.

"Bo immediately underwent various tests and was diagnosed with T cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia; a dangerous side effect Abbott Laboratories knew could affect Humira users but failed to warn them about."  

Vickery says because of the Humira-induced leukemia, Bo now must continue to undergo intense treatment that could potentially cause long-term and serious side effects, and could possibly develop secondary cancers as he matures.

Prior to the launch of Humira in 2003, other similar drugs had been linked to lymphoma and other forms of cancer, and clinical trial data suggested that there was a very significant epidemiological "signal" about the risk.  Once Humira was launched, many adverse event reports were submitted regarding cancers, however Abbott did nothing to warn about this.  Bo was diagnosed with Leukemia on January 8, 2009, over seven months after the FDA said that physicians and patients should be warned about this side effect, and nearly ten months before a Black Box warning was finally issued regarding Humira-induced leukemia in pediatric and adolescent patients.