VIOXX Law Team

VIOXX HISTORY and TIMELINE

May 1999: FDA approves Vioxx.

March 2000: Merck reveals that a new study found Vioxx patients had double the rate of serious cardiovascular problems than those on naproxen.

November 2000: The New England Journal of Medicine publishes the study, called the Vioxx Gastrointestinal Outcomes Research Study (VIGOR).

February 2001: The FDA Arthritis Advisory Committee recommends that the FDA require a label warning of the possible link to cardiovascular problems.

September 2001: The FDA sends a warning letter to Merck to stop misleading doctors about Vioxx 's effect on the cardiovascular system.

April 2002: The FDA instructs Merck to add information about cardiovascular risk to Vioxx 's label.

Aug. 25, 2004 : An FDA researcher presents results from a clinical trial, concluding that Vioxx users are more likely to suffer a heart attack or sudden cardiac death than those taking Celebrex, Pfizer 's rival drug, or an older NSAID.

Sept. 23, 2004 : Merck claims that it learned this day that patients taking Vioxx in a study were twice as likely to suffer a heart attack or stroke as those on placebo.

Sept. 30, 2004 : Merck removes Vioxx from the market. This includes the U.S. and 80 other countries, in which Vioxx was sold.

Vioxx withdrawn from the market

On September 30, 2004, Merck & Co. Inc. announced that it will be withdrawing Vioxx worldwide, following a 3-year colon cancer trial result, which confirmed concerns of increased risk of heart attack and stroke, which could lead to serious injuries and/or death.

FDA has also issued a Public Health Advisory to notify patients of this action and to advise them to consult with their physicians about alternative treatments. Physicians are being told to take their patients off Vioxx.

Vioxx lawsuits expected to grow exponentially

Many analysts and lawyers are expecting a flood of lawsuits and that the number would be growing exponentially. Some even claim that the damages collected by successful plaintiffs will likely be bigger than fen-phen, the failed diet drug that generated massive number of lawsuits. The first Vioxx cases could go to trial at the end of this year or early next year.