Plaintiff Dorothy Porter has filed a Lipitor lawsuit against Pfizer Inc., alleging that its blockbuster cholesterol drug caused her to develop type-2 diabetes.

Porter received a prescription for Lipitor in August 2001, and used it as prescribed, according to the Lipitor lawsuit. Lipitor is a type of drug called a statin. Statins can help control cholesterol levels in the blood. High cholesterol levels can encourage heart disease, and even a healthy diet and exercise can only control cholesterol partially. Drugs like Lipitor are designed to help control the amount of “bad” cholesterol. However, in 2003, Porter was diagnosed with type-2 diabetes. Research has suggested that the drug could cause this disease.

Porter’s Lipitor lawsuit alleges that Pfizer was aware of the risk of developing type-2 diabetes associated with Lipitor side effects. To support this allegation, the lawsuit cites various research studies that indicate there is an increased risk of diabetes associated with the drug. The effect seems to be most pronounced in postmenopausal women.

The Lipitor lawsuit further alleges that the manufacturers of the drug deliberately concealed the risks associated with the drug. To support this allegation, the lawsuit cites the fact that when the FDA mandated changes to the drug’s labeling to reflect the risk of diabetes, the manufacturers allegedly disguised the warning in complex medical jargon, and never actually uses the phrase “diabetes.” Instead, it make allusions to “elevated glucose levels.”

Porter’s lawsuit joins existing multidistrict against Pfizer where hundreds of Lipitor lawsuits have been consolidated. The Lipitor MDL is similar to a Lipitor class action lawsuit in that multiple people are suing Pfizer for similar injuries. Unlike a Lipitor class action lawsuit, however, plaintiffs in the Liptior MDL retain their own personal injury lawyer and are awarded an individual settlement based on their specific injuries.

Most of the lawsuits in the Lipitor MDL, like Porter’s, seek more than $75,000 in damages against Pfizer over developing diabetes. These damages are sought to cover the cost of lifelong medical care (since diabetes is a lifelong disease), legal fees, and punitive damages. The law that allows for the possibility to collect extra money in cases of medical fraud, as a sort of extra punishment to discourage further misconduct.

The case is formally titled Dorothy Porter v. Pfizer Incorporated, Case No. 3:14-cv-00736-LB, filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California.