Cross-posted from The Coast Reporter »
By CHRISTINE WOOD
CANADA — The class action lawsuit launched by a Sechelt woman against Wyeth Canada Inc. for selling hormone replacement therapy drugs linked to breast cancer is now settled and a $13.65 million payment has been awarded by the B.C. Supreme Court.
A large portion of that settlement, about 43 per cent, will go to legal counsel for the plaintiffs in the class action suit. The approximately 1,100 plaintiffs themselves will split what’s remaining based on medical costs incurred to date and the ability to prove they took the hormone replacement drug Premarin or Premplus between 1977 and 2003.
Sechelt resident Dianna Stanway, who launched the class action suit, said this week that while the payout may be minimal in the end for the many women involved, she was “satisfied with whatever they can get us.”
“As long as everybody knows it can cause cancer. That was the main object of the court case, because people didn’t know it did at the time but now they do,” Stanway said.
“I’m quite pleased with the outcome of it all.”
Stanway started the class action suit in 2004 after taking the drug Premarin and subsequently being diagnosed with ductal and lobular breast cancer. Continue reading »
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What this article does not mention is that Premarin and its sister drugs are made with the urine of pregnant mares.
The pharmaceutical industry now commonly refers to the estrogen component in Premarin drugs (including its latest Duavee) as conjugated estrogens conveniently omitting equine which indicates the true identity and alarming nature of these products. There is a hint in the name of the drug itself — pregnant mare’s urine.
The $13M payout is chump change to pharma giant Pfizer, who acquired Wyeth in a merger in 2009 and continues to make billions of dollars from the sales of these types of products.
And all those commercials you see for Premarin cream? Yessiree. Same drug. Same company. Same conjugated equine estrogens. Same horror for the horses.
RELATED READING
• Learn more about the drugs, the women and the horses »
NOTE
Please note that the image of the PMU farm on this page was not filed with the cited report.
Tuesday's Horse 
This isn’t good for the mates either. They are kept constantly pregnant, and the foals are sent to slaughter. It’s a terrible business.
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I would think, if enough women get educated to the problems associated with hormone therapy and it’s risks, they would refuse to purchase, sending a huge message to the drug companies! No demand, end of supply! Surely they can find a natural product to fit the needs, without risking harm to women’s health and the barbaric practice from which it’s obtained.
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The problem is that the majority of people don’t bother to get educated about much of anything, and the drug companies and other large corporations can surf the ignorance all the way to the bank.
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I got educated and it tears my heart apart to use anything with estrogen from tortured horses. Unfortunately, though i was on a synthetic compound estrogen that took premarin’s place, Big Pharma FORCED the one company making this product go out of business UNTIL they stopped producing Enjuvia. This is a company making myriad genetic drugs, and they were allowed back in business after deleting the synthetic compound estrogen. Lots of phony press backed Big Pharma, claiming they were warning women with claims this drug caused cancer. It didn’t. OBJECTIVE research showed there were FEWER side effects than premarin and it was SAFER, but nothing stops rich billionaires from getting their way. I have no choice: research indicates – contrary to the PR press of Big Pharma, that estrogen has a positive effect on cardiovascular problems, and i have many.
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Reblogged this on noordin400's Blog.
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How about a petition banning the use of horse urine in drugs…for the health benefit of humans and for the horses?
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Continue going through the new phone books every year and send the gynecologists and hormone replacement therapy clinics copies of Jane Allin’s articles on Premarin, Premadol and Duavee. Keep sending.
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Thank you Janet. You are changing lives with your hard work, even if it is not immediately apparent. Every step toward good is rewarded.
And I know this makes Jane feel really good too. She puts everything she has into her articles and reports. Thank you again.
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Well.. when you allow another creature to suffer to ease your own discomfort, ya get whatcha get. Maybe ppl will feel an inkling of what these horses must go through daily. Karma.
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These companies don’t care how many times they are sued the CEO’s won’t lose any sleep over it because they have the money to pay off whatever lawsuits is thrown at them now and in the future. They consider themselves to big to fail.
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