Four lawsuits alleging that Allergan’s textured breast implants are linked with serious illness are set to move forward after the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPML) sent the cases to federal court in New Jersey.

The JPML settled on New Jersey because it is not only Allergan’s principal place of business, but also the location of both evidence and witnesses relevant to the cases. The multidistrict litigation has been assigned to U.S. Judge Brian R. Martiniotti.

These proposed class action lawsuits each allege that Allergan actively concealed links between its textured breast implants and a rare form of cancer. The lawsuits accuse Allergan of taking advantage of a loophole in the reporting requirements set forth by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), using it to bury reports of serious injuries that had been associated with the textured breast implants. Because of this, the lawsuits claim, it was only after the agency tightened its requirements in 2017 that more adverse event reports were brought to light.

In one of the suits, two women say that they have developed a rare immune system cancer referred to as breast implant-associated anaplastic large-cell lymphoma, or BIA-ALCL, as a result of these breast implants. According to the lawsuits, 573 known cases of BIA-ALCL have been reported — 84 percent of which are linked specifically with Allergan breast implants.

So far, the lawsuits claim, 33 deaths have been caused by BIA-ALCL, 12 of which were Allergan’s Biocell implants.

These implants have been on the market since 2006 after Allergan bought the medical device company Inamed. The lawsuits allege that by 2011 Allergan was aware of the link between its implants and BIA-ALCL but “did not disclose the connection to consumers or the medical community.” Not only did Allergan fail to disclose this information, the litigation claims, the company actively buried these allegations in reports known as “alternative summary reports,” which are separate from adverse event reports.

After the FDA updated its reporting requirements in 2017, reports of BIA-ALCL and other breast implant-related injuries jumped from about 200 annually to 4,567 in 2017, followed by 8,242 in just the first half of 2018 alone, the complaint said.

The FDA has since asked Allergan to issue a voluntary recall of its Biocell textured breast implants.

Filing a Breast Implant Cancer Lawsuit

If you or someone you love has been implanted with textured breast implants and has since been diagnosed with cancer or another breast implant-associated illness, you may be able to file a lawsuit and pursue compensation. Of course, filing a lawsuit cannot take away the pain and suffering caused by these complications, nor can it bring a loved one back to life, but it can at least help to alleviate the financial burden incurred by medical expenses, lost wages, and more.

Filing a lawsuit can be a daunting prospect, especially while dealing with a cancer diagnosis, so Top Class Actions has laid the groundwork by connecting you with an experienced attorney. Consulting an attorney can help you determine if you have a claim, navigate the complexities of litigation, and maximize your potential compensation.

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This article is not legal advice. It is presented
for informational purposes only.