Lawsuits Filed Over Lipitor Side Effects (The brave few coldly rejected)

Lawsuits Filed Over Lipitor Side Effects
By DAVID B. CARUSO
The Associated Press
Thursday, June 8, 2006; 9:33 PM

NEW YORK -- Two men who believe they suffered lasting muscle damage from taking the popular anti-cholesterol drug Lipitor are suing medication's maker, Pfizer Inc., claiming the company didn't issue loud enough warnings about potential side effects.

Charles M. Wilson, a former insurance executive from Atlanta, and Michael Mazzariello, an attorney from New York City, said in separate lawsuits that they began experiencing debilitating pain, weakness and memory problems after taking the drug.

"It ruined my life," said Mazzariello, 47. He said that within weeks of going on the medication, he couldn't walk without a cane, tend his garden or lift his 1-year-old child.

The symptoms subsided once Mazzariello stopped taking the medication. He stood under his own power at a news conference Thursday at a Manhattan hotel, but he said he still suffers from pain, fatigue and a tingling sensation in his hands and feet.

Pfizer called the two suits "baseless" and vowed to fight them in court. A spokesman for the company, Bryant Haskins, said all potential side effects of the drug are included on its labeling and often mentioned in advertising.

Haskins said the number of Lipitor users experiencing those symptoms is "very, very small ... well under 1 percent," and that they are far outnumbered by the millions of people who have taken it safely.

Mark Krum, the lawyer handling the suits filed by Wilson and Mazzariello, acknowledged that the medication may be safe for most people, but he said that didn't absolve the company of its duty to market it responsibly and adequately disclose side effects. Tweet