Compensation for PML Patients
If you or someone you love has been diagnosed with progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML), we may be able to help you recover compensation for your medical bills and suffering. To schedule a free and private consultation with a qualified PML attorney, please contact us today.
Who Might Qualify for Compensation?
Any person or a loved one who has taken an immunosuppressive drug and later been diagnosed with progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) will likely qualify for compensation from the drug company. PML occurs in people whose immune systems have been compromised, which is something that immunosuppressive drugs do.
PML is a life-threatening disease, usually killing its sufferers or causing severe neurologic disabilities in a matter of days or weeks. It is characterized by headaches, memory loss, loss of cognition (ability to process information), worsening weakness in the arms and legs, clumsiness and poor coordination, vision problems, and aphasia (loss of the ability to speak, listen, read and write). There is no treatment or cure for PML.
Medications that Increase the Risk of PML
Medications that weaken the immune system and that have been linked to PML include:
The best way to confirm that a person has PML is to find the JC virus (John Cunningham virus) in their cerebrospinal fluid. The virus, which occurs in 85 percent of the population, remains latent and harmless in healthy people with normal immune systems.
But, in immunocompromised individuals, the virus, which lives in the kidneys and gastrointestinal tract, becomes activated. It travels to the brain where it destroys the myelin, a protective covering of the nerves, and causes PML. The worsening symptoms of PML are due to the destruction of parts of the brain by the JC virus.
Genentech, the maker of Raptiva®, took the drug off the market in April 2009. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) wanted the drug recall, because PML was occurring in patients taking the drug.
Most patients with PML, approximately 85 percent, have AIDS. Other patients with the disease include a few organ transplant patients taking immunosuppressive drugs, some cancer patients (those with Hodgkin's disease and lymphoma), people with sarcoidosis, and other people with compromised immune systems, including those with systemic lupus erythematosus.
Find Out about Recovering Compensation
If you or a loved one has taken an immunosuppressant and then been diagnosed with PML, you deserve to be compensated for the ravages and early death from this terrible disease. A PML lawyer can help you receive monetary compensation for the pain and suffering you've incurred as well as the medical costs and lost wages associated with the diagnosis.
Contact us to schedule a free review to learn more about your right to compensation.