Watchdog group sues Bayer over vitamin's cancer-risk claims

Trouble for Bayer's One A Day Men's Multivitamins deepened this week as a watchdog group filed suit over the German drugmaker's claim that the supplement helps reduce risk of prostate cancer.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest criticized as false Bayer's suggestion that the selenium found in the vitamins helps reduce the risk of prostate cancer. The organization had been threatening a lawsuit against Bayer for months.

Bayer had back away from the claim in public statements, saying, "We decided to no longer utilize this language in our promotion and labeling of our products."

The center filed suit in California Superior Court in San Francisco after Bayer, despite its statement, continued to suggest that selenium will help prevent prostate cancer.