OKLAHOMA CITY --A man whose father died shortly after starting to take a popular cholesterol-lowering drug is leading a class-action lawsuit against the drug's maker, Bayer AG (G.BAY).
Steven Sparks' 87-year-old father died in January, less than two months after he began taking the drug Baycol, which has been linked to 52 deaths worldwide.
"He contacted us Friday morning and we filed the suit Friday afternoon," said William Federman, whose Oklahoma City law firm is handling the case. "At this point, we're looking for a very expansive class, including anybody who's been on the drug.
"We believe there are other Oklahoma residents who were prescribed the drug, which was touted by the company as being a wonderful, cutting-edge drug."
Bayer voluntarily withdrew the drug from the market last week.
The lawsuit, which covers anyone who used Baycol during the two years before its recall, charges Bayer with alleged product liability and negligence. The lawsuit requests actual and punitive damages.
The lawsuit has named no physicians as defendants.
"At this time, we're not faulting the physicians," Federman said.
Baycol is one of a popular family of drugs called statins that have been linked to rare reports of a side effect called rhabdomyolysis, a life-threatening condition in which muscle cells are destroyed and released into the bloodstream.
Rhabdomyolysis can cause severe muscle pain, most frequently in the calves and lower back, and occasionally is so severe that patients develop potentially fatal kidney failure.
Before its recall, Baycol was taken by 700,000 Americans.
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