Chen agreed that Roche and the FDA need to do more.

“People should be really made more aware of the dangers associated with the drug,” he said. “The warnings that are currently there aren’t enough.”

Jane Gu and her son’s friends brought their concerns to the FDA and pressed for more extensive warnings of Lariam’s side effects.

On July 9, Roche and the FDA released a new Medication Guide to be distributed with all prescriptions of Lariam. It highlights such information as who should not take Lariam, how it should be taken and what the side effects—mild and serious—might be.

FDA officials did not respond to repeated requests for comment.

Gu’s family and friends say they are currently considering their legal options.

“We are talking to lawyers right now there—there are some law firms that have been engaged in law suits against Lariam,” said Chen. “Not for any compensatory damages, but more for punitive measures because there’s a lot of controversy over this drug. There can be danger, especially for people who are going to be doing things that need motor coordination.”

They hope that through their actions, whether Gu’s death was or was not related to taking the drug, that more people will be informed of its potential risks.

“He would want me to do whatever is possible to prevent the same tragedy from happening again,” Jane Gu said. “Being a physician and being a mother, I don’t want this thing to happen again and I think it could be happening a lot. If I can at all help with my loss, then I want to.”

—Staff writer Laura L. Krug can be reached at krug@fas.harvard.edu.