According to recent research, the long-term use of PPI meds can more than double a patient’s risk of developing stomach cancer. A growing number of patients are filing lawsuits over PPI gastric cancer and other complications, alleging that they were not adequately warned about these risks.

If you or someone you love has suffered from PPI stomach cancer, you may be able to file a lawsuit and seek compensation.

Basics of PPI Meds

Proton pump inhibitors, or PPI meds, are some of the most widely used medications in the United States. In fact, in 2013 alone, more than 15 million Americans were prescribed PPI meds.

PPI meds work by reducing the gastric acid in a person’s stomach. Some of the more popular PPI drugs are Nexium, Prilosec, and Prevacid.

These medications have become one of the most popular options for treating gastric conditions. However, recent research has shown that the use of PPI meds may actually be linked with an increased risk of stomach cancer—especially when these drugs are taken for longer periods of time. Users of PPI meds claim that they were not adequately warned about the risk of some of these side effects.

PPI Stomach Cancer Study

Patients have reported suffering from a number of serious long term side effects after using PPI meds like Nexium, including PPI stomach cancer. Stomach cancer is the third leading cause of cancer death, as well as the fifth most common cancer.

According to a recent study, the long-term use of these drugs may increase the risk of stomach PPI stomach cancer by nearly 250 percent. PPI and stomach cancer risk are associated with a bacterium known as Helicobacter pylori. This is actually quite a common bacterium; in fact, more than half of the global population carries it harmlessly throughout their lives. However, for some individuals, this bacterium can prompt the development of stomach cancer.

A major contributing factor for PPI cancer is the development of a Helicobacter pylori infection. The eradication of H. pylori has in the past been shown to reduce the risk of PPI stomach cancer, but may not be as effective a prevention technique as previously thought. Indeed, the new study, based in Hong Kong, found that for those patients who have had H. pylori eradicated, the use of PPI meds still more than doubles the risk of PPI stomach cancer. The researchers note that their findings suggest the need for “caution when prescribing long-term PPIs to these patients even after successful eradication of H. pylori.”

The researchers, led by Dr. Wai Keung Leung, note that “this is the first study to demonstrate that long-term PPI use, even after H. pylori eradication therapy is still associated with an increased risk of gastric cancer. This is likely related to the profound acid suppression of PPIs that worsens atrophic gastritis, particularly in those patients with established gastric atrophy as a result of chronic H. pylori-induced inflammation.”

For some patients to be treated for PPI long term side effects, they may simply be taken off of the medication. For others, unfortunately, side effects may be more permanent in nature.

Filing a PPI Stomach Cancer Lawsuit

If you or someone you love has suffered from complications of PPI meds like Nexium, such as PPI cancer, you may be able to file a lawsuit. Filing a lawsuit cannot take away the pain and suffering caused by side effects of PPI meds, but it can help to alleviate the financial burden caused by medical expenses and lost wages.