Action Targeting Merck’s Cancer Immunotherapy Dismissed With Leave to Amend

SEATTLE — A Washington federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit accusing Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp. of failing to warn that its cancer treatment can cause permanent bladder damage, ruling that the complaint “severely lacks non-conclusory factual allegations that state a plausible claim for relief.”

However, in the May 27 order, Judge Richard A. Jones of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington allowed the plaintiff to file a second amended complaint.

Michael Kahler was diagnosed with bladder cancer, which his doctor treated with Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG), a form of immunotherapy made by Merck. The treatment, …