(Original)
By Paula Christian
8/23/2001 - Like millions of other Americans, Dolores Canter has high cholesterol. Canter, 67, of Seffner tried one of the cholesterol-lowering drugs, Zocor. But it didn't do much, and in April her doctor switched her to a newer medication called Baycol. That's when the problems really started, Canter alleged in a lawsuit filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court.
The case is one of a growing number against Baycol's maker, Bayer Pharmaceutical, since it pulled Baycol from the market Aug. 8 after reports linking it to 52 deaths. Baycol was taken by 700,000 Americans and is one of a popular family of drugs called statins that dramatically lower cholesterol.
But it has been linked to a muscle condition called rhabdomyolysis that can cause kidney failure. Symptoms include muscle pain, weakness, tenderness, fever, dark urine and nausea. Canter, a senior model for television commercials, said her energy level dropped dramatically shortly after she began taking Baycol. She felt weak and exhausted and had to take a nap daily, she said. Her elbow grew tender and she suffered cramps in her calves.
After seven weeks on Baycol, Canter's white blood cell count dropped so sharply that doctors worried her immune system had been jeopardized and that she might have leukemia. Canter had to undergo a series of painful tests, including a bone-marrow test for cancer, she said. All came up negative. Canter discontinued use of Baycol in June, and her white blood-cell count returned to normal last week, she said. She feels better, she added. Her doctors can't say for sure Baycol was to blame, Canter said, but she believes it was.
Ellena Friedman, a spokeswoman for Bayer, declined to comment. The lawsuit seeks class-action status and unspecified personal injury damages. It also demands the refund of all money Bayer earned from Baycol sales - $615 million in the United States since 1998 - to class members. In addition, the lawsuit seeks a medical monitoring program for former Baycol users for early diagnosis and treatment of rhabdomyolysis.
CONTACT: John Yanchunis of James, Hoyer, Newcomer & Smiljanich, P.A. at (813) 286-4100 or jyanchunis@jameshoyer.com
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