Tasigna Patients Are Warned of The Risk of Sudden Death

Novartis has taken measures, updating their US website's homepage, to alert the public of the FDA's QT prolongation and atherosclerosis warnings

Monday, May 13, 2019 - Tasigna is a chemotherapy drug prescribed to treat adults and children that have Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia (Ph+ CML) in chronic phase. According to Novartis, the drug's maker, "Ph+ CML is found during a routine blood test when results show a high white blood cell count." Signs that you may be developing CML are unusual tiredness, shortness of breath, fever, bone and muscle pain, weight loss, a feeling of fullness in the belly and unusual night sweats.

Individuals that have been prescribed Tasigna have filed lawsuits against its maker, Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis AG, claiming that the drug caused them to develop atherosclerosis, a narrowing of the hearts main means of transporting blood, causing heart attacks and sudden death. Tasigna Atherosclerosis lawyers help advise families and individuals harmed by Tasigna before filing a claim. In addition, another life-threatening side effect of Tasigna is developing an irregular heartbeat called QT syndrome that leads to sudden death. The warning of irregular heartbeat leading to sudden death, deaths that have in fact been reported, has been added to the company's Tasigna.com US website on the homepage so as to draw the attention to the condition that it truly deserves.

The Tasigna website's warning of the risks of sudden death is in line with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) sense of urgency when it forced the company to change the drug's warning label, a "black box" requirement, to reflect the likelihood of sudden death. Chemotherapy patients, however, may never even see the packaging their chemotherapy drug comes in and concerned family members should check the drug's website for more complete information. Doing so may help the patient make a more informed decision and perhaps choose a less toxic alternative to Tasigna.

The FDA's Black Box Warning reads: "WARNING: QT PROLONGATION AND SUDDEN DEATHS. See full prescribing information for complete boxed warning. Tasigna prolongs the QT interval. Sudden deaths have been reported in patients receiving nilotinib (Tasigna)."

The Tasigna website warning on QT prolongation, stresses that only 1% of patients actually die from taking Tasigna and that those who did may have had a prior history of heart problems. The website has concurred with the FDA and advised oncologists to carefully a patient's medical history and monitor the drugs they are on. Before Tasigna treatment doctors should perform an ECG before, during and after treatments as instructed in the black box warning.

The company has to its credit updated the homepage of the patient's portion of the website to alert Tasigna patients in the United States that their lives could be placed in imminent danger by proceeding with Tasigna. The homepage states, "Prolongation and Sudden Death: TASIGNA can cause QTc prolongation, a possibly life-threatening heart problem. QTc prolongation causes an irregular heartbeat, which may lead to sudden death."

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OnderLaw, LLC is a St. Louis personal injury law firm handling serious injury and death claims across the country. Its mission is the pursuit of justice, no matter how complex the case or strenuous the effort. The Onder Law Firm has represented clients throughout the United States in pharmaceutical and medical device litigation such as Pradaxa, Lexapro and Yasmin/Yaz, where the firm's attorneys held significant leadership roles in the litigation, as well as Actos, DePuy, Risperdal and others. The Onder Law Firm has won more than $300 million in four talcum powder ovarian cancer lawsuits in St. Louis. Law firms throughout the nation often seek its experience and expertise on complex litigation.