Fake Avastin Given to Cancer Patients: Free Consultation with Attorney
Fred Pritzker 
Fake Avastin was sold in the U.S.
At least 20 medical practices may have given patients fake Avastin, an injectable medicine used to treat cancer and is administered to patients in clinics, hospitals, and doctors’ offices. The counterfeit version of Avastin does not contain the medicine’s active ingredient, bevacizumab, which may have resulted in patients not receiving needed therapy.
These medical practices purchased the Avastin from foreign sources that are unapproved by the FDA, and they are liable for the damage caused to patients by the decision to purchase the fake Avastin. Because the purchase was a violation of federal regulations, patients given the fake Avastin may have claims for punitive damages against the doctors and others. With punitive damages, the money rewarded is meant to be in an amount that is high enough to punish the responsible parties.
Contact me for a free consultation regarding a lawsuit against one of the medical practices listed below:
- Beverly Hills Cancer Center
- Dennis Casciato, MD
- Phillip L. Chatham, MD
- Weber Chen, MD
- Mohamed Ghraowi, MD
- Mark Goldstein, MD
- Naresh K. Gupta, MD
- Raymond Heung, MD
- Eddie Hu, MD
- Hany Khalil, MD
- Phyllis Klein, MD
- McLeod Cancer and Blood Center
- Harry Menco, MD
- R. Deva Nathan, MD
- Martin Palmer, MD
- Nabil Phillips, MD
- Omid S. Shaye, MD
- Patrick Sheehy, MD
- Glenn Tisman, MD
- Rangachari Vasan, MD
The fake version is labeled as Avastin, manufactured by Roche. Roche is the company that manufactures Avastin approved for marketing outside of the United States. The only FDA-approved version of Avastin for use in the United States is marketed by Genentech (a member company of Roche). The FDA-approved version does not include the Roche logo on the packaging or vials.
The 20 medical practices in the United States purchased unapproved cancer medicines and, potentially, the fake Avastin, from Quality Specialty Products (QSP), a foreign supplier that may also be known as Montana Health Care Solutions.
Attorney David Szerlag Quoted by Lawyers USA in Article About Avastin Vision Loss Cases
Attorney David Szerlag of our law firm was quoted in the October, 2011, edition of Lawyers USA in an article discussing cases of blindness resulting from an off-label use of Avastin and lawsuits against Genentech, the maker of Avastin, and the Veteran’s Administration. The following is an excerpt from the article, “Off-label Avastin use is linked to blindness” by Sylvia Hsieh:
Attorney David Szerlag
David Szerlag, an attorney at Pritzker Olsen in Minneapolis, said he has a 52-year-old client in Virginia and a 91-year-old client in Satatoga, Calif., who lost their vision within days of an eye injection of Avastin. Both patients were told by doctors that their vision loss is permanent, Szerlag said.
“We have been signing up individuals from various states — South Carolina, Virginia and Illinois — who are complaining of the same symptomology. Starting to hear from clients around the country makes me think it’s not an isolated problem,” Szerlag said, noting that he is still in the preliminary stages of investigating the cases.
If your loved one lost his or her vision after having an injection of Avastin, contact attorney David Szerlag for a free consultation.
Avastin Eye Infection Lawsuit for Vision Loss
Our attorneys are investigating eye infections and vision loss caused by Avastin that was repackaged by pharmacies into syringes for use as macular degeneration treatment. The evidence suggests that during the repackaging process the Avastin became contaminated with dangerous bacteria, primarily Streptococcus (including oralis, viridans and other serotypes). When the contaminated Avastin was injected into patients’ eyes, the bacteria caused infections that, in many cases, led to total vision loss.
Attorney David Szerlag is our lead attorney for these cases. He has won millions for people injured by medical products.
Repackaged Avastin Causing Vision Loss in Several States
People from several states have reported vision loss after injections with Avastin repackaged by pharmacies. Outbreaks of eye infections from the repackaged Avastin have been reported in the Miami, Florida area, the Los Angeles, California area, and Nashville, Tennessee. The pharmacies that supplied the repackaged Avastin involved in these outbreaks were located in Hollywood, Florida, Nashville and Los Angeles.
We have also been contacted by people in South Carolina and Illinois. We are gathering evidence for Avastin eye infection lawsuits, and our attorneys are available for a free case review.
Repackaging sterile drugs without proper aseptic technique can compromise product sterility, potentially putting patients at risk for microbial infections. People are losing their vision because pharmacies are negligently repackaging Avastin.
If you or a family member contracted an eye infection and suffered vision loss after treatment with Avastin, contact our attorneys for a free consultation. Our attorneys have held leadership positions in multidistrict litigation (MDL) lawsuits. MDL is like a class action lawsuit but only the pretrial proceedings are consolidated.
Repackaged Avastin eye infections may have affected people in other states: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
Avastin Lawsuit: Free Consultation with Lawyer Regarding Eye Infection
At least 12 serious eye infections (endophthalmitis) have been caused by injections into the eye of repackaged Avastin (bevacizumad) that was contaminated with Streptococcus bacteria. These reported cases were in the Miami, Florida area.
Investigators traced the tainted Avastin injections to a single pharmacy located in Hollywood, Florida. The pharmacy repackaged the Avastin from sterile injectable 100 mg/4 mL, single-use, preservative-free vials into individual 1 mL single-use syringes. It is suspected that the repackaging process was not done with proper aseptic technique, which allowed Streptococcus bacteria to contaminate the Avastin.
This pharmacy should be held accountable for the injuries and blindness that it caused. These cases are even more egregious because the FDA has not approved of the use of Avastin for macular degeneration or other eye problems. Avastin is approved as a cancer drug.
To date, three clinics are involved in this outbreak of Streptococcus endophthalmitis. Because the pharmacy distributed the repackaged Avastin to multiple eye clinics, other clinics may be involved. Health care professionals should ensure that drug products are obtained from appropriate, reliable sources and properly administered. It appears that the clinics that used the repackaged Avastin on the 12 outbreak victims did not take the care needed to make sure the repackaged Avastin was safe to use. In addition, Lucentis (ranibizumab injection) has been approved by the FDA for wet age-related macular degeneration, so one wonders why the clinics used the unapproved, repackaged Avastin instead of an approved drug.
Fred Pritzker is our lead attorney for cases involving contaminated medical products that cause serious infections. He and his team of lawyers have won millions for people injured by defective medical products and represent people throughout the United States. Contact our law firm for a free consultation regarding lawsuit against the pharmacy and others responsible for your loved one’s eye infection and vision loss.
Repackaged Avastin Caused Eye Infections and Blindness in Miami, Florida Area, FDA Warns
The FDA has warned health care professionals that repackaged Avastin (bevacizumab) has caused at least 12 cases Streptococcus endophthalmitis (serious eye infections) in the Miami, Florida area. Some of the people who suffered this infection were blinded.
The repackaged Avastin has been traced back to a pharmacy located in Hollywood, Florida. The pharmacy repackaged the Avastin from sterile injectable 100 mg/4 mL, single-use, preservative-free vials into individual 1 mL single-use syringes. The pharmacy then distributed the Avastin to multiple eye clinics for use in treating patients, including the three eye clinics in the Miami area where the 12 victims of this outbreak had the Avastin injected into their eyes. Avastin is a cancer drug and is not approved for use in the eyes as a treatment for macular degeneration.
Repackaging sterile drugs without proper aseptic technique can compromise product sterility, potentially putting the patient at risk for dangerous infections. Health care professionals should ensure that drug products are obtained from appropriate, reliable sources and properly administered.
If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with an eye infection, specifically Streptococcus endophthalmitis, contact our attorneys for a free consultation.
