Hair loss is a common side effect of most chemo drugs, making it a universal symbol of cancer survivors. However, the hair loss after chemo is temporary, and the cancer survivors anticipate the hair will regrow.
Regrettably, individuals undergoing cancer treatment with Taxotere may never witness hair regrowth, a side effect of which they were often unaware. Studies also indicate that this chemotherapy drug, widely used in breast cancer treatment, is linked to severe and permanent vision loss and eye damage.
The impact goes beyond just suffering permanent hair loss; it extends to the realm of legal challenges, including taxotere hair loss lawsuits and taxotere eye injury lawsuits. These revelations underscore the importance of comprehensive awareness and informed decision-making for patients facing breast cancer chemotherapy with drugs like Taxotere.
Taxotere lawsuits are against the manufacturer, Sanofi-Aventis Inc, for failing to disclose these severe side effects. They claim the manufacturer was aware that Taxotere caused permanent hair loss or alopecia since the 1990s. They did not inform the medical community and consumers in the US until January 2015.
These lawsuits seek financial compensation for damages such as:
- Physical pain
- Medical expenses
- Pain and suffering
- Mental distress
- Lost wages
- Loss of future earning ability
If you or your loved one used Taxotere before December 2015 and suffered permanent hair loss or eye damage, we’re ready to stand with you. Join the Many who are fighting back and demanding justice and compensation for their suffering.
History of Taxotere
Taxotere is a chemo drug under a class of cytotoxic drugs known as taxanes. The history of Taxotere dates back to 1962 when the National Cancer Institute financed a national program.
The program primarily focused on discovering new cancer medications derived from natural resources. A team from Washington sent a sample from the Pacific yew tree to North Carolina for isolation and extraction of taxol, the active ingredient.
In 1978, a team from New York discovered the cancer-fighting potential of the yew tree and started early tests. The results were promising, but the natural Pacific yew trees were limited.
More independent research groups started experimenting with the synthetic production of the drug to avoid relying on the natural yew resources. It was a challenging process, and the breakthrough finally came in 1994.
Scientists created the synthetic drug and a variation of taxol, the original drug called docetaxel. The new version was nearly identical to the original form and functioned similarly.
Sanofi-Aventis financed the majority of the research and production of docetaxel. After the discovery, the company immediately applied for FDA approval for the new drug under the name Taxotere.
The FDA first approved Taxotere for limited use in 1996. The agency allowed the drug to treat metastatic or locally advanced breast cancer patients that didn’t respond to other treatments.
Sanofi-Aventis then applied for FDA approval to expand the usage of Taxotere. In 2004, the FDA approved the drug to treat anyone suffering from operable node-positive breast cancer.
After this approval, more patients started using Taxotere, and the number kept growing. The drug was so popular that about 75% of all women with breast cancer were using Taxotere.
The FDA also approved Taxotere to treat other types of cancer, including:
- Metastatic prostate cancer
- Neck and head cancer
- Advanced stomach cancer or gastric adenocarcinoma
- Non-small cell lung cancer
There’s no argument that Taxotere is an effective cancer treatment. The issue is that the patients and their doctors were unaware that alopecia and eye damage were possible side effects.
Evidence shows that Sanofi-Aventis knew about these risks and intentionally omitted detailed warnings on Taxotere’s label to optimize profits.
Thousands of breast cancer patients in the US were unaware of permanent hair loss until the FDA mandated the warning update in 2015. The agency’s move followed many reports from doctors and patients that Taxotere caused alopecia.
However, this wasn’t the first time Sanofi-Aventis discovered the issue. According to the current lawsuits, Sanofi updated Taxotere’s warning label in Europe back in 2005. The company also published internal research in 2005, highlighting the risks of alopecia.
Sanofi-Aventis deliberately avoided including this information on drugs in the US for an entire decade. They downplayed the risks to promote sales, marketing Taxotere as a better alternative to other less expensive chemo drugs.
Sanofi-Aventis pushed the drug, yet they knew that similar drugs from competitors were safer than Taxotere. During chemotherapy, even the slightest difference in the drug’s effectiveness could mean some fatalities were avoidable.
All Names Taxotere Goes by
Taxotere is the primary brand name for the IV chemo drug produced by Sanofi-Aventis. A generic version of this drug is also available under the name docetaxel or Docefrez.
Taxotere and docetaxel became available in the US market in the 1990s. Other companies also manufacture and distribute docetaxel, including:
- Polymed Therapeutics
- Sun Pharmaceuticals
- Hospira Worldwide
- Actavis
- Accord Healthcare
- Sandoz
- Pfizer
Besides Sanofi-Aventis, the current Taxotere lawsuits also mention some of these companies.
Taxotere treatments often involve one-hour infusion sessions after every three or four weeks. Since it minimizes the frequency and amount of chemo doses, it was a welcome relief for most breast cancer patients.
Overview of Research Findings
Chemotherapy drugs directly attack cancer cells because they grow and multiply faster than normal cells. They inhibit cell division, preventing the cancerous masses from developing.
Taxotere targets the cell structure or cytoskeleton, which allows the cells to function. The cells become paralyzed and finally die off.
Taxotere is an IV drug that comes into contact with the whole body, not only the areas affected by cancer. This means the drug can potentially attack all cells within the body, causing severe side effects.
Chemotherapy drugs target fast-growing cells, which can include other non-cancerous cells that grow at the same rate, such as:
- The bone marrow that generates blood cells
- Mucous membranes in the mouth and intestines
- Hair follicles
This is why one of the most common side effects of chemotherapy is hair loss. Once the patient completes treatment, the healthy cells start recovering and regenerating.
Taxotere and Hair Loss
Most patients expected that hair would regrow after using Taxotere, like with other chemo drugs. Unfortunately, the hair failed to grow back entirely or less than 50%.
Sanofi-Aventis knew that permanent hair loss was a possible side effect of Taxotere.
In 1998, the company sponsored a five-year study involving over 1,000 breast cancer patients on Taxotere. The study’s goal was to evaluate the long-term effects of using Taxotere.
The team noted that about 9.2% of the breast cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy with Taxotere, a widely used chemotherapy drug, developed permanent hair loss. The effects lasted for more than ten years in some women, underscoring the severity of the side effect.
In 2006, the Rocky Mountain Cancer Centers conducted a study involving breast cancer patients utilizing Taxotere along with other chemotherapy drugs like Cytoxan and Adriamycin. The researchers found that about 6.3% of the patients experienced less than 50% hair regrowth, further emphasizing the significant impact on hair loss associated with Taxotere.
The Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology contributed to the body of evidence in 2010 by publishing a study that echoed similar results. The study raised a cautionary flag regarding a growing number of cases where Taxotere caused alopecia, adding weight to the concerns about the chemotherapy drug’s potential for causing permanent hair loss.
Given the adverse effects observed in these studies, it’s no wonder that there has been a surge in individuals considering whether to file a Taxotere lawsuit, especially for cases involving permanent alopecia. The growing number of people filing Taxotere lawsuits reflects the need for legal action to address the damages caused by this chemotherapy drug.
Concerns about vision damage have also prompted some to explore the possibility of taxotere vision damage lawsuits, as the broader implications of Taxotere-related side effects become more evident in the medical literature.
Two years later, in 2012, the Annals of Oncology published a study involving 20 women who used Taxotere from 2007 to 2011. The researchers discovered that 19 of the 20 women developed permanent hair loss, affecting even the eyelashes and eyebrows.
Taxotere and Eye Damage
Researchers discovered that some people experienced permanent vision damage as more breast cancer patients used Taxotere. The drug affected the lacrimal system that produces and drains tears.
Several studies highlighted the link between Taxotere and optic neuropathy or epiphora. A Canadian team from the University of British Columbia conducted such a study.
The team noted that Taxotere triggered watery eyes and excessive tearing. These symptoms advanced to a condition called epiphora and increased the risk of damaging the optic nerves or optic neuropathy by four times.
Taxotere penetrates the tear film during treatment, causing fibrosis in the lacrimal system. These unusual growths permanently block the nasolacrimal and puncta ducts.
The lacrimal system loses the ability to drain tears, causing persistent watery eyes or epiphora.
There’s no doubt Sanofi-Aventis knew about the possible effects of Taxotere on the lacrimal system. The company knew that the drug could potentially cause permanent watery eyes.
Although Taxotere’s label mentions excess tearing and eye redness as possible side effects, there are no further details. Sanofi-Aventis did not provide adequate and clear warnings to consumers or the medical community.
The label fails to highlight that the excessive tearing could be due to canalicular stenosis. This condition has a rapid onset and causes permanent or irreversible damage to the eyes.
Sanofi-Aventis doesn’t specify that timely intervention can prevent canalicular stenosis and permanent damage.
If you or someone you care about developed alopecia or eye damage after using Taxotere before December 2015, you deserve compensation for your injuries.
Schedule a free case review with experts from Join the Many to discuss your legal options.
Recalls
Taxotere (docetaxel) is a precious drug that even the World Health Organization recognizes as an essential medicine. So far, there are no official recalls of the drug, and it’s still available on the market.
However, Sanofi-Aventis updated Taxotere’s warning label in 2015. This decision followed a warning by the FDA, requiring the brand to include permanent hair loss as a side effect.
The Safety Information page now mentions that some patients report experiencing alopecia after using Taxotere.
General Physician Sentiment
Since Taxotere is a cytotoxic chemo drug, it can damage and kill normal, healthy cells in the body.
As Dr. Ananya Mandal, MD highlights, Taxotere can affect the number of red blood cells in the body. The shortage of red blood cells causes anemia, fatigue, and shortness of breath.
Other common side effects of Taxotere include:
- Permanent hair loss on the head, eyebrows, eyelashes, and other body hair
- Peripheral neuropathy or numbness and tingling in the feet and legs
- Diarrhea, nausea, or constipation due to damage to the gastrointestinal lining
- Joint, bone, and muscle pain
- Chronic fatigue and weakness
- Infections due to low white blood cell count
- Changes in the nail color
Studies show that Taxotere can also affect your vision and damage your eyes. If you’re using or previously used Taxotere, ensure you watch out for symptoms of eye damage such as:
- Loss of vision
- Blurred vision
- Swollen eyelids
- Blocked tear ducts or nasolacrimal duct obstruction
- Narrowing of the tear ducts or stenosis
- Dry eye syndrome or keratoconjunctivitis
- Itchiness or eye irritation
- Watery eyes and excessive tearing or epiphora
- Eye damage that requires surgical intervention
If you experience symptoms following Taxotere treatment, it’s crucial to seek prompt medical attention. Early intervention can mitigate the risk of permanent damage to your vision and eyes.
The profound impact of Taxotere on vision can pose challenges in everyday activities like driving and reading, affecting one’s self-esteem and interpersonal relationships. These difficulties impede cancer survivors from resuming their normal lives post-treatment. Permanent vision loss and eye damage also hamper the ability to earn income.
Facing such losses during vulnerable moments is unjust. That’s why Join the Many stands by individuals like you, offering crucial legal resources to pursue your Taxotere lawsuit. Our support extends to those dealing with the aftermath of chemotherapy treatments, seeking justice in breast cancer treatment, and navigating medical records related to the cancer drug Taxotere. We understand the complexities of taxotere litigation, especially concerning vision loss and eye injury. Join the Many is here to assist you in the legal journey against cancer drug-related side effects and the impact they have on cancer cells and overall health.
Brief Lawsuit History
Most Taxotere lawsuits claim that Sanofi-Aventis failed to adequately warn the medical community and consumers about the risks of alopecia and eye damage. Allegations include the company’s awareness of these side effects, accusing them of concealing information from US consumers until 2015.
Lawsuits focus on those who suffered permanent hair loss, experienced vision damage, and are seeking justice through avenues like taxotere class action lawsuits and taxotere products liability litigation. The legal actions emphasize the need for accountability in cases of hair loss and vision damage, asserting that warnings to doctors were insufficient.
A good example of a Taxotere lawsuit is the claim filed by Hattie Carson, a breast cancer survivor from Ohio. According to the case, Sanofi-Aventis did not update Taxotere’s label in the US, despite making the changes in Canada in 2012 and Europe in 2005.
The Taxotere Hair Loss MDL
As more people submitted Taxotere lawsuits, the US Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPML) merged all cases into multidistrict litigation (MDL).
Since the individual cases would have similar processes, the MDL merges them to streamline the procedures. However, every lawsuit remains independent, so the verdict on one case doesn’t apply to all others in the MDL.
The MDL (No. 2740), formed in October 2016, is under Judge Kurt D. Engelhardt in the federal court in the Eastern District of Louisiana.
In the ongoing litigations surrounding vision loss and product liability, both sides involved in the legal dispute chose specific cases from the MDL (Multidistrict Litigation) for bellwether trials conducted in 2019 and 2021. These bellwether trials serve as crucial test cases, offering insights for the court and both parties to predict how future cases are likely to proceed.
The selection of cases and the outcomes of these trials play a significant role in shaping the direction of the broader legal landscape concerning vision loss litigations and product liability issues. Immediate treatment is essential for those affected, and the bellwether trials aim to provide a framework for addressing the complexities of these legal proceedings.
The trials provide an opportunity to determine how much a jury is likely to award and which arguments are persuasive. Although the judge ruled in favor of Sanofi-Aventis in the first two trials, attorneys are confident the subsequent trials will have different outcomes.
The Taxotere MDL currently has over 30,000 cases and is the fifth-largest open MDL in the US.
Taxotere Eye Damage MDL
As more people filed Taxotere lawsuits alleging eye damage and vision loss, the JPML merged them into a separate MDL in 2022. The MDL now involves more than 12,000 lawsuits.
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