The "tell your doctor" instruction is a CYA joke from Pfizer.  When a family member was put on Lipitor, she repeatedly told the doctor about the problems she was having, but the doctor insisted the cause couldn't possibly be the Lipitor.  She finally just stopped taking it on her own, but like the man in this article, some problems, while improved, have continued for several years.  There are a LOT of people out there who have suffered from statins, which are huge money-makers for the pharmaceutical companies.  It would be great if the lid were blown off the harm that drug manufacturers are doing.