Novartis Granted Summary Judgment in Aredia/Zometa ONJ Case

SAN FRANCISCO — After excluding a plaintiff’s expert causation testimony in an Aredia/Zometa injury case, a California federal judge granted Novartis Pharmaceutical Corp.’s (NYSE: NVS) motion for summary judgment on all claims, finding insufficient evidence to establish causation.

On Feb. 15, Judge Susan Illston of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California found the plaintiff’s experts failed to present a scientific basis for their conclusions that the cancer drugs caused the plaintiff’s osteonecrosis of the jaw.

Linda Messick was diagnosed with breast cancer in August 2000. She received radiation therapy and several medications, and in April 2002 …