Atlanta, GAIf Marti hadn’t researched Januvia after her husband died from pancreatic cancer, she too might also have suffered serious Januvia side effects. “When my doctor prescribed Januvia, I remembered that my husband Don had taken it and there was no way I was going to get Januvia cancer,” says Marti.
Both Marti and Don were diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes but Marti says they both had it under control. She doesn’t remember exactly how long Don was on Januvia but his quality of life was pretty good; he was enjoying the “golden years.”
“After Don passed away, my blood sugar and pressure went crazy due to all the stress. I moved to another town and a new doctor prescribed me Januvia,” says Marti. “She obviously didn’t know about life-threatening side effects such as Januvia cancer.
“I got the prescription filled before a bell rang in my head. There was something about this drug that I thought wasn’t safe. I looked it up online and that’s when I remembered that Don was on Januvia. He passed away from pancreatic cancer, right out of the blue, and nobody should have to go through that.
“Thankfully I never took this diabetes drug. I went back to my old doctor and told him I wasn’t taking the med. He just nodded his head and said that my blood sugar isn’t that bad so if I stay off sweet foods, I would be okay.” Not only could Januvia have caused Marti to have pancreatic issues, she didn’t even need to take the drug in the first place.
“When I found out that Januvia is linked to pancreatitis and pancreatic cancer, I thought how crazy is that, to give people a drug that can kill them,” Marti adds.
“I was familiar with several types of cancer but I’d never heard of pancreatic cancer. Never in my wildest dreams could I think anything could be as bad as this - Don suffered so much.
“The doctor told us that pancreatic cancer is considered the worst because it is so painful. Even the maximum amount of morphine he was given couldn’t numb the pain.
“If nothing comes of my Januvia claim, that is alright with me, as long as it gets taken off the market. It is unfathomable that Januvia is still being prescribed. I hope the attorneys succeed in bringing the Januvia manufacturer [Merck] to justice and make them stop peddling this horrific drug.”
Another Januvia user from Georgia died last year from pancreatic cancer. Ms. Janet Nance filed a complaint against Merck alleging that the death of Bettye Jean Alexander of Georgia was caused by “Merck’s relentless pursuit of market share with the diabetes drug Januvia.” Ms. Alexander took Januvia for Type 2 diabetes from October 16, 2009 to December 5, 2012.
The complaint has been centralized in the Multidistrict Litigation (MDL NO. 2452 In Re: Incretin-Based Therapies Products Liability Litigation) in the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of California.
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