Pfizer Inc. has been named in a lawsuit alleging its prescription cholesterol-lowering drug Lipitor causes type-2 diabetes. According to the Lipitor lawsuit, Pfizer knew or should have known about the potential link between Lipitor and type-2 diabetes, yet concealed this information from the public and the medical community.

The Lipitor diabetes lawsuit filed by Texas couple Theresa and Elmer S. joins the ongoing Lipitor MDL (multidistrict litigation). The Lipitor lawsuit states that Theresa was prescribed Lipitor in September 2003 to lower her high cholesterol. Theresa continued to take Lipitor until November 2003, when she was diagnosed with type-2 diabetes.

Theresa’s short form complaint alleges Pfizer knew or should have known that there was a connection between Lipitor and diabetes before it was made available to the public in 1997, and that Pfizer should have warned consumers of the risk. Instead, Pfizer only added a warning to the product labeling in February 2012, after the FDA’s Division of Metabolism and Endocrinology Products requested that a warning be provided for consumers and the medical community.

Other lawsuits in the Lipitor diabetes MDL similarly accuse Pfizer of putting profits before consumer safety and further allege that even after the mandated label change, Lipitor’s label still does not adequately warn patients about the risk of type-2 diabetes.

Lipitor Diabetes

Several studies have uncovered a link between Lipitor and type-2 diabetes, an irreversible condition that causes a patient to develop high blood sugar levels. In the body, food is broken down into sugar (glucose), which travels through the bloodstream. Researchers suspect that Lipitor can inhibit the function of the pancreatic cells responsible for storing and releasing insulin, and may also decrease the body’s sensitivity to the hormone.

In February 2012, the FDA released a statement on Lipitor and statins. The agency warned that patients taking these drugs may have an increased risk of developing high blood sugar levels and type-2 diabetes, and announced that changes will be made to the drugs’ labeling to reflect this concern. According to an FDA spokesperson, prescribing doctors should assess patients’ blood sugar levels after they have started treatment with Lipitor or another statin.

Lipitor Lawsuits

Over 2,000 Lipitor-related product liability lawsuits alleging fraud and negligence by Pfizer have been consolidated into a multidistrict litigation. Judge Richard Gergel of the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina is presiding over the MDL. An MDL is similar to a class action lawsuit, except that each plaintiff’s allegation is judged separately.

Similar product liability cases against Lipitor are piling up in many state courts. The first of the federal Lipitor type-2 diabetes cases is scheduled to go to trial in October 2015. Lipitor bellwether trials will help parties evaluate the strength of the evidence and evaluate settlement options for the remaining cases.

The Lipitor Type-2 Diabetes MDL is In Re: Lipitor (Atorvastatin Calcium) Marketing, Sales Practices and Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2:14-mn-02502-RMG, in the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina, Charleston Division.