Wyeth - Premarin/Prempro: time to settle?

Wyeth’s hormone-replacement therapy drug Prempro caused an Illinois woman’s invasive breast cancer and she deserves $3.7 million, a jury decided in Philadelphia, without yet deciding whether the company was at fault and should pay her.

Jurors deliberated about two hours and 15 minutes before concluding that Wyeth’s drug was a proximate cause of Connie Barton’s breast cancer. Barton, 64, was diagnosed with cancer in 2002, five years after she began taking Prempro to treat menopausal symptoms.

Jurors will hear arguments on Wyeth’s liability and possible punitive damages at a second phase of the trial starting on Oct. 1. Wyeth, which is being acquired by Pfizer Inc., has said that it faces more than 9,000 lawsuits over its menopause drugs, along with Pfizer’s Pharmacia & Upjohn unit.

The company has now lost five of eight trials over its hormone-replacement drugs since cases began reaching juries in 2006. Some of the verdicts were set aside, and others are on appeal. This is the company’s third straight loss.

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