Truvada Attorney for Gay and Bisexual Men

When Truvada first hit the market in the early 2000s, many individuals suffering from the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) were relieved that what seemed to be an innovative medicine could help them reduce the spread of the virus both within their body and to their partners.

Now, many are suffering from excruciating side effects like bone and kidney complications, and one of the largest group affected by these side effects are gay and bisexual men.

At Onder Law Firm, we want to help you get your life back on track after suffering from these debilitating side effects caused by taking Truvada. Our legal experience and resources can help you get the compensation you deserve.

If you or your partner have succumbed to painful bone and kidney complications due to the usage of Truvada or other related medications, contact Onder Law Firm for a FREE, no-obligation legal consultation with our best Truvada lawsuit attorney today at (314) 310-7924.

The Numbers Behind Gay and Bisexual Men and PReP Usage

In an article by NBC News, it states that around 35 percent of gay and bisexual men, who make up roughly 2 percent of the total U.S. population, who are at high risk of developing HIV are currently taking pre-exposure prophylaxis (PReP) as of 2017.

This is an increase to 2014’s numbers by at least 6 percent. According to the article, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that usage rates are low for gay and bisexual men of color, a primary demographic affected by HIV.

In all, 86 percent of African-Americans, 87 percent of Latinos, and 95 percent of white gay and bisexual men know about Truvada and what it can do to help them manage HIV. On the other hand, only 40 percent of white, 30 percent of Latino, and 26 percent of African-American gay and bisexual men used PReP medications like Truvada.

That means that around 40 percent of gay and bisexual men may have been exposed to the harmful effects caused by the active ingredient inside of PReP medication called tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF).

How TDF Affects Gay and Bisexual Men

While many gay and bisexual men who have contracted HIV are putting their trust in a company to provide a safe medication to manage the virus, Gilead is making money hand over fist off of their suffering.

TDF-based medications like Truvada have now been linked to the development of serious complications. The medication breaks down the calcium and phosphate in bone at a rapid pace where bone regeneration becomes negligible. This process ultimately causes bones to become more brittle, leaving them in a state where they can easily be fractured or broken.

In time, this deterioration of bone can lead to:

• Bone deterioration or osteoporosis
• Bone loss or osteopenia
• Discomfort in extremities
• Tooth decay and loss

If osteoporosis sets in, your wrists, spine, and hips are at greater risk of fracturing, which can lead to life-long injuries that require medical care. As if this wasn’t a serious concern enough, the TDF in Truvada is also known to cause serious kidney complications as well.

Since TDF causes an excess of calcium to be removed from bone, it is tasked to the kidneys to remove it from the body. In normal circumstances, the kidneys would flush it away with the urine out of the body.

Oftentimes, the calcium build up in the kidneys, in tandem with the buildup of TDF as large quantities of it are required to be effective, doesn’t allow the organs to properly rid itself of it all, causing a myriad of different kidney complications such as:

• Decreased urination
• Declining kidney function
• Chronic kidney disease
• Acute kidney injury
• Acute renal failure
• Fanconi syndrome
• Kidney failure

Lastly, the TDF in medications like Truvada have been linked to the development of lactic acidosis. This condition causes the body to become more acidic by creating an imbalance of the body’s pH levels. Over time, this condition can cause:

• Confusion
• Headache
• Overall feelings of discomfort
• Muscle cramps and pain
• Abdominal pain or discomfort
• Diarrhea
• Decreased appetite
• Extreme fatigue or exhaustion
• Breathing troubles
• Rapid heart rate
• Jaundice

It is important to note, however, that Gilead’s Truvada isn’t the only drug capable of causing these serious side effects. Gilead has created many other TDF-based medications that are suspected of causing the same symptoms:

• Viread
• Stribild
• Atripla
• Symfi Lo
• AccessPak for HIV PEP Expanded with Kaletra
• AccessPak for HIV PEP Expanded with Viracept
• Complera
• Cimduo
• Genvoya

Since taking any of the aforementioned drugs can cause these symptoms and side effects, seeking out medical attention is a good idea to see if these symptoms are related to your or your partner’s Truvada use.

What makes matters worse, and what is truly the cause of many lawsuits filed against Gilead, is the alleged deception the company committed by withholding a safer alternative that uses tenofovir alafenamide fumarate (TAF) in smaller, safer doses.

This active ingredient achieves the same desired effect of reducing the growth of HIV-infected cells in the body and prevents the development of it in those not affected by the virus as TDF-based medications do but contains less risk of developing bone and kidney complications.

Gilead did this to maximize profits, knowing full well about the side effects of TDF but went through with the falsification and concealment of data to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) anyway to ensure that profit margins were, and remained, wide.

If it was proven that the TDF in Truvada or any of the above medications caused your bone and kidney complications, our Truvada lawsuit attorneys have the experience necessary to earn the maximum monetary compensation you deserve.

What Should You Do If You or Your Partner Took Truvada and Experienced Its Side Effects

If you or your partner take Truvada and are currently experiencing bone and kidney complications, you will want to seek out medical attention immediately. Getting a doctor to diagnose you is important to both your health and your product liability claim, should you choose to file one.

At the hospital, medical staff may ask you questions regarding your injury. Be as detailed as possible, especially if you have used Truvada. The information they collect is written down in an incident report, and this document, along with medical bills detailing treatment, will be important to submit as evidence in your claim.

Then, you will need to acquire the help of an unmatched legal team like our Truvada lawsuit attorneys at Onder Law Firm. Our legal team will sift through all of your evidence in order to establish Gilead’s liability.

To determine this, your lawyer must prove that your injury was the direct result of using Truvada through one of the following:

• Strict Liability – A claim that proves the product was defective by design, whether in the manufacturing or marketing process, making it unreasonably dangerous.
• Negligence – A claim that analyzes if the company, manufacturer, or marketer, which Gilead is all three, provided a duty of care to ensure that their product was safe to consume.
• Breach of Warranty – A claim where your lawyer investigates if the product acted in accordance to the warranty or broke it and caused your injury.

Once liability has been determined and all of the evidence secured, our attorney can reach out to local medical experts to get a better understanding of how Truvada affected you or your partner in order to solidify your case and your chance at winning maximum monetary compensation.

You May Be Eligible to Receive Compensation

Currently, thousands of displeased users of Truvada are looking to take its manufacturer to civil court in an effort to voice their discontent and seek out compensation for the damages they have incurred.

Many gay and bisexual men who have used Truvada and developed debilitating side effects are filing product liability claims seeking out compensation to cover:

• Medical bills (past and present)
• Lost wages and reduced future earnings
• Pain and suffering
• Emotional trauma
• Loss of quality of life
• Loss of consortium
• Wrongful death damages

While fighting for the compensation you deserve is important, filing a product liability claim for Truvada sends an important message not only to others that have suffered, but to other pharmaceutical companies as well, stating that these kind of business practices will not be tolerated.

Even if filing a lawsuit against a giant corporation like Gilead Sciences Inc. may seem like a daunting task, the right legal team from Onder Law Firm can help you get your message across while earning the compensation you need to properly recover.

Gilead disrespected you by putting profits over your health. Show them your discontent by recruiting the best Truvada lawsuit attorneys at Onder Law Firm to fight for the compensation that is due to you. Contact us at (314) 310-7924 for your FREE legal consultation today.