James Marshall’s acting career ended when he started taking Accutane, according to Bloomberg.com. As a result of taking the Accutane acne drug, Marshall required emergency surgery to remove his colon and bowel ailments, leaving him unable to work. Marshall, age 44, played U.S. Marine Louden Downey in the 1992 movie “A Few Good Men.” He sought at least $11 million in damages from Roche Holding AG. An estimated 16 million people took Accutane to treat acne before Roche pulled Accutane off the market in 2009after juries awarded millions to former users over bowel-disease claims.

Drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline settled a lawsuit filed on behalf of a man who lost his life in 2006 concerning the heart attack risks of Avandia, according to Bloomberg.com. The man suffered a heart attack while taking the dangerous diabetes drug. The settlement avoided a jury verdict which may have resulted in millions of dollars’ worth of punitive damages to the drugmaker. The company already agreed to pay almost half a billion dollars to resolve around 10,000 lawsuits concerning Avandia’s heart attack health risks. The man’s lawsuit was the first of 2,000 cases on Avandia scheduled to go to trial. In the United States, sales of the Avandia were limited because of heart attack risks. In September 2010, Glaxo said it would stop promoting Avandia worldwide. On January 17, 2011, Glaxo announced it was taking a $3.5 billion charge to cover expenses linked to investigations over Avandia.

Dangerous drugs often make it to market because drug companies, focused on revenue, do not anticipate the dangers during clinical trials. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) classifies dangerous drugs as defective, where the side effects outweigh their benefits. The FDA is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, responsible for protecting public health through regulation of dietary supplements, prescription and over-the-counter pharmaceutical drugs, and vaccines.

Pharmaceutical litigation deals with injury from prescription drugs. A personal injury case against a pharmaceutical company holds drug manufacturers accountable for drugs’ adverse effects and unproven claimed results.

Harmful drug personal injuries can result in organ damage, blood clots, illness, and death. The pharmaceutical industry is powerful, and has money resources to dispute claims, arguing injuries come from the victim’s own actions.

Pharmaceutical litigation requires testimony from medical professionals to prove a link between the product and the injury. Technical experts hold Ph.Ds and Masters degrees in chemistry, biology, and other areas of science. Well known defective drugs include:

• Accutane
• Avandia
• Ortho Evra
• Gadolinium

When suffering injuries from defective drugs, engage a prepared Florida personal injury attorney who holds drug manufacturers accountable.