Will Wyeth actually pay?

Drug Maker Shares Breast Cancer Survivor's Pain
Jury Rules in Favor of Woman Who Says Wyeth Drugs Caused Breast Cancer

(and why do they make it sound like the woman "says" the drug caused the cancer? they should say it was PROVEN by doctors and scientists and then decided by a jury)

I'm telling you, I would have a difficult time deciding if the risks where worth it IF I had been given a choice back when my symptoms were so bad. By the time I understood more about menopause (through doing this website), my worst symptoms were over and most of my problems have been of the "aging" kind more than menopause. I have been advocating that every woman should be allowed to make her own decision based on her family history and her own research and beliefs.

This is what scares me and makes it so real: Wyeth must pay Prempro damages Wyeth must pay $99 million in punitive damages over its mishandling of menopause drugs that helped cause three Nevada women's cancers, a jury ruled. The panel ruled Oct. 12 that the company owed the women $35 million in compensatory damages. Jurors in state court in Reno concluded yesterday that Wyeth, the largest maker of hormone-replacement medicines, should also pay the three women punitive damages for concealing the breast-cancer risks of its Prempro and Premarin drugs. Wyeth said it would appeal. The three women's suits are among about 5,300 against Wyeth over its menopause drugs.

I don't have to make the decision about hrt....I've been without it for 17 years, but I AM faced with a similar decision regarding my psoriasis....the side effects of the medicine that would most likely clear this up (it's about 75% on my body now), are lymphoma, TB and a very weakened immune system. When I read that info above, it made the possibilities so real...these are actual women who thought they were doing the right thing

"A Nevada jury awarded Rowatt more than $42 million for her share of $99 million in punitive damages, and $35 million in compensatory damages — the largest ever judgment against the nation's leading maker of hormone replacement therapies. Rowatt followed her doctors' orders and took Premarin, and then Prempro, to ease the symptoms of menopuase for nearly eight years. "They kept telling me there may be some heart benefit, and I believed them," Rowatt said. "If you can't believe your doctor, who can you believe?" Seven years ago, Rowatt was diagnosed with breast cancer. With no family history of breast cancer, she blamed the drugs for causing the disease."

The possibility of getting emphysema or lung cancer is what made me finally stop smoking. I smoked for 43 years, knowing what kind of risk I was taking, but it wasn't until I was 57 that I realized what it could mean. Now I'm facing additional risks if I feel I have to take Humira to clear the psoriasis....plus I'm not totally convinced I'm out of the woods from the long term smoking or even from other types of cancer....with no cancer in my family (except for a few long lost cousins). I'm not sure it matters any more. What about the money? Does it make up for the risk? "[The money] really can't give me back part of my body," she said. "The chemotherapy I had to endure is terrible." (she was awarded a total of $140+ million) She'll probably never see it but I'm sure it feels like a victory, just the same. What do you think?

Dee