What Are Propecia Sexual Side Effect Lawsuits?

Going bald is a horrible experience. You can see your hair thin by the day and the evidence is slapping you in the face from your shower drain. This is particularly disconcerting for younger men because, though women like to say they don’t really care about a full head of hair, balding men can tell you that women actually really, really care by the sheer volume of rejection. This has inspired millions of men to take hair loss prevention drugs such as Propecia, however, many have found that there is a potentially permanent sexual side effect that can prove to turn off a woman far more than baldness.

Global pharmaceutical giant Merck first offered Propecia as “Proscar” to men because the active ingredient “finasteride” was found to reduce the size of a man’s prostate, a common occurrence as men get older. It turned out that finasteride had another side effect, it stopped hair and in some cases promoted hair growth. Executives at Merck saw dollar signs.

Merck & Co introduced Propecia on the market in 1997 and has since enjoyed blockbuster billion dollar annual profits from it. Unfortunately, as the drug stayed on the market they began getting complaints about the fact that it caused Erectile Dysfunction in some patients. Some studies have suggested that the effect has a potential to be permanent.

The problem was further worsened by reports that Propecia may potentially also cause male breast cancer, a potentially deadly disease as men are neither encouraged nor trained to search for signs.

This has lead to a class action lawsuit from men around the country, taking Merck to court over their alleged erectile dysfunction, lowered quality of life, and emotional distress, amongst other things.

Propecia Lawsuits

It has been long drawn out process, but Merck has finally agreed that all Propecia lawsuits filed in federal district courts throughout the United States should be heard by one judge for pretrial proceedings. This is called a Multidistrict Litigation (MDL), which is first presented to a U.S. Judicial Panel who decides where the trial will ultimately be held. This is expected to happen at a hearing scheduled for March 29, 2012 in San Diego, California.

The pharmaceutical company’s legal team has suggested that the judicial panel should transfer all cases to the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, where 41 of the 53 lawsuits over Propecia have already been filed.

Many Propecia MDL plaintiffs have proposed that the proceedings be heard in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York or the Western District of Washington. However, the defense’s attorneys claim that moving the cases to the Eastern either of those venues would be inefficient due to the judge’s lack familiarity with details and issues in a number of other Propecia erectile dysfunction cases.

Issues with Propecia

Propecia has warnings about the sexual side effects issued by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). They say, “Men reported one or more of the following: less desire for sex; difficulty in achieving an erection; and, a decrease in the amount of semen. Each of these side effects occurred in less than 2% of men.”

However, Propecia studies are showing that the instance of erectile dysfunction may be more prevalent than merely 2% and lawsuits suggest that Merck may have know about it without properly informing the FDA or the public.

Merck has been forced to provide additional warnings to men in certain other countries, indicating that post-marketing reports have shown that some men experience sexual problems that persist.

Filing A Propecia Lawsuit

One of the hardest problems with filing a Propecia lawsuit is admitting that this drug has adversely effected your sex life. A lawsuit can be a distressing in itself, but many men feel as if it’s necessary in order to teach Merck a lesson that they can’t mess with people’s lives for profit.

Many men filing lawsuits have experienced:

• Erectile Dysfunction
• Male Breast Cancer
• Prostate Cancer
• Lowered sexual desire
• Lowered amount of semen
• Lowered quality of life
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Lack of confidence

By filing a Propecia lawsuit you can receive the compensation you deserve. Depending on your situation, you will either have an individual lawsuit or be added to the MDL already in progress. After a quick interview, the experienced Phillips Law Firm attorneys will be able to tell you your options and help you seek justice.

Propecia Defective Drug Lawyers

If you or a loved one are taking Propecia or any other derivative of Finasteride it is important that you contact legal council that has experience in protecting patients from giant pharmaceutical companies. Call Phillips Law Firm for a consultation on your legal options.