A man claims that he developed stomach cancer after taking the valsartan generic drug to treat high blood pressure. He says that his stomach cancer was caused by a possibly carcinogenic contaminant that entered into the drug during its manufacturing process, and he aims to hold the drug’s makers accountable for his injuries.

Plaintiff Kevork A. says that between October 2015 and June 2018, he was prescribed and took the valsartan generic drug to treat high blood pressure. Allegedly, he took valsartan that was contaminated with a possible carcinogen during its manufacturing process, and was subsequently included in a recall of the drug issued by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Kevork aims to hold Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceutical Co., the manufacturer where the drug was allegedly contaminated, accountable for his injuries, along with Prinston Pharmaceutical Inc., and Healthcare US, Solco Healthcare US LLC, and Haihai US Inc., the producers of the drug.

Kevork claims that he was diagnosed with stomach cancer on or around May 22, 2018. He says this cancer has already caused him “permanent and disabling injuries.”

Allegedly, Kevork would not have consented to taking valsartan had he known or been fully and adequately informed of the increased risks associated with taking the drug after it had been contaminated with a possible carcinogen. He claims that the relied on the drug makers’ representations and omissions regarding the safety and efficacy of valsartan.

He says that neither he nor his physicians knew of the specific risks of taking the drug. Allegedly, the drug’s makers knew or should have known of the dangers of the valsartan that had been contaminated, but consciously chose not to inform Kevork or his doctors of the risks.

Kevork argues that he suffered a range of injuries from taking the contaminated valsartan, including physical injury from the cancer, emotional injury because of the toll his diagnosis took on his mental state, and economic injury because of medical costs related to his conditions and wages lost due to missed work.

According to Kevork, the valsartan generic drug was contaminated with the possible human carcinogens NDMA and NDEA, which he says entered into the drugs after a manufacturing plant in China changed its manufacturing processes, which enabled the drug to become contaminated.

As a result, the FDA announced a recall of the contaminated drug in an effort to protect patient health. The recall has been expanded as more information about the alleged contamination has become available. 

Later, it was allegedly discovered that the contamination problem extended past the Chinese plant and was also a problem in a plant in India, and the recall was expanded. The recall expansion made news headlines, as the expanded recall means that more consumers may have been affected by the alleged valsartan generic drug contamination, according to the Charlotte Observer. 

According to Kevork, the contamination was occurring over a number of years. He says that “the ongoing scheme…could not have been perpetrated over a substantial period of time, shad occur here, without knowledge and complicity of personnel at the highest level of the [drug’s makers], including corporate officers.”

The Valsartan Generic Drug Contamination Lawsuit is Case No. 1:19-cv-06822, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California.