Home » Taxotere » Taxotere Lawsuit

Taxotere Lawsuit

• More on Taxotere
  • Taxotere Permanent Alopecia (Hair Loss)
  • Taxotere Lawsuit

The breast cancer treatment, Taxotere, may be more likely to cause permanent alopecia (hair loss) than other chemotherapy drugs. Individuals who experienced this side effect may be elible to file a Taxotere lawsuit if it is determined that Sanofi-Aventis failed to provide patients and doctors with appropriate warnings.

Taxotere Lawsuit Investigation

Bernstein Liebhard LLP, a nationwide law firm that represents the victims of defective medical products, is investigating Taxotere lawsuits involving permanent hair loss. If your hair did not regrow following Toxotere chemotherapy, please contact our office at (888) 994-5118 to learn more about your possible legal options.

Taxotere Plaintiffs Seek Centralization of Federal Claims

Plaintiffs pursuing Taxotere hair loss lawsuits in federal court have asked the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation to consolidated their claims in the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana. According to a Motion for Transfer filed with the Panel on July 22nd, at least 33 such claims are already pending in 16 federal jurisdictions. Plaintiffs assert that centralization of the docket will promote judicial efficiency. Read More

The JPML will hear Oral Arguments on the proposed Taxotere centralization during its next Hearing Session, which will be convened on September 29, 2016 in Washington, D.C. Read More

On August 16, 2016 Taxotere defendant, Sanofi-Aventis, filed a response with the JPML voicing support for centralization of all federal hair loss claims.  However, the company has asked that the docket be transferred to either the District of New Jersey or District of Colorado. Read More

A Response filed by plaintiffs supporting the centralization of federally-filed Taxotere lawsuits indicates that more than 50 hair loss claims have now been filed in 27 U.S. District Courts. “Transfer and coordination of the Related Actions will eliminate the risk of inconsistent rulings from various courts throughout the country, conserve limited judicial resources, reduce litigation costs for all parties, and permit the cases to proceed to trial in an efficient manner,” the response states. Read More

The JPML heard oral arguments on the proposed Taxotere mulidistrict litigation.  Read More

In an Order dated October 4, 2016 the JPML agreed that the federal Taxotere docket warranted centralization, and established a new multidistrict litigation in the Eastern District of Louisiana. The Order initially transfers 33 Taxotere lawsuits to the  proceeding, while 56 additional federal cases could also be eligible for transfer to Louisiana. Read More

The newly-established Taxotere multidistrict litigation is scheduled to convene an Initial Case Management Conference on November 10, 2016.  An Order issued in the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana, on October 13th directs the parties to submit separate written statements to the Court by noon on Wednesday, November 2, 2016, indicating their preliminary understandings of the facts involved in the litigation and the critical factual and legal issues.  Read More

According to a Pretrial Order dated November 10, 2016 new guidelines pertaining to the filing of requests for summons and summons returns have been issued in the federal Taxotere litigation. Summons requests are to be filed in the docket for the member case, as opposed to the master docket.  Summons returns and waivers returned executed are not to be filed into any docket, master or member, unless doing so becomes necessary. In such cases (for example, the filing of a motion for default judgment) the summons return is to be filed as an exhibit to the motion, etc., to which it relates. Read More

Plaintiffs’ and Defendant’s Settlement Committees have been established in the federal Taxotere litigation, per an Order dated December 13, 2016. Members of these committees are to engage in continuous general settlement discussions on a regular basis.  Read More

An Order issued in the federal Taxotere litigation on December 21, 2016 directs Counsel to draft and submit a proposed Common Benefit Order to the Court by Friday, January 6, 2017. Proposed Plaintiff and Defendant Fact Sheets are to be submitted by January 13, 2017. The Order also directs Counsel to confer regarding the scheduling of a proposed “Science Day/Presentation” with the Court in February. Read More

Breaking Taxotere Lawsuit News

• March 2017: The federal Taxotere litigation convened two conferences this month. According court records, a Status Conference was convened on March 16^th specifically to address issues relating to Electronically Stored Information (ESI). The proceeding’s regular monthly Status Conference was held on March 17^th, during which time a number of matters, including the progress of discovery and motions practice, were addressed. Read More
• March 2017: The Court overseeing federal Taxotere hair loss claims has directed the parties to meet and confer regarding a date for Science Day. Per an Order issued on March 7, 2017, the Court has offered two possible dates, including Wednesday, April 19, 2017 or Wednesday, May 3, 2017. Read More
• February 2017: Two Pretrial Orders were issued by the Taxotere multidistrict litigation court on February 13, 2017, including an Order outlining a proposed Common Benefit Order previously submitted by the parties. A second Pretrial Order addresses the Court’s intent to appoint a Special Master for management, oversight, and substantive review of matters related to and claimed to be common benefit, as well as any other matters or recommendation as directed by the Court. Read More
• February 2017: Plaintiffs’ counsel in the federal Taxotere litigation have been directed too submit a Master Complaint and Short Form Complaint to the Court on or before March 31, 2017. Per an Order dated February 10^th, plaintiffs filing claims in the proceeding on or after April 1, 2017 are to do so via the Short Form Complaint.  Those with cases filed in the litigation as of April 1^st may file a Short Form Complaint with the Court as an amended complaint by May. Use of the Master and Short Form Complaints will greatly streamline the process for filing Taxotere lawsuits in the proceeding.  Read More
• January 2017: More than 700 Taxotere lawsuits are now pending in the federal litigation underway in Louisiana. The Court’s calendar indicates it will convene a Status Conference next Thursday, January 26^th at 10:00 a.m. Read More
• January 2017: Several new Pretrial Orders have been issued in the federal Taxotere litigation, including one dated January 9, 2017 that extended the deadline for the submission of a Common Benefit Order until January 13^th. An Order dated January 11th clarifies that the scope of the litigation is to include claims that cite generic versions of Taxotere, as well as lawsuits involving the name-brand medication. A second Order issued the same day directs the parties to submit proposed Plaintiff Facts Sheets and Defendant Fact Sheets by January 23^rd. Read More
• August 2016: Taxotere cases continue to mount, with a new filing in San Diego federal court. Like similar cases currently pending in courts around the U.S, the lawsuit accuses Sanofi-Aventis of concealing information linking Taxotere to permanent hair loss. Read More
• July 2016: Yet another Taxotere hair loss lawsuit has been filed, this time in the U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois. In a July 7th filing, the plaintiff claims that she has suffered from continuing alopecia ever since undergoing treatment with Taxotere for breast cancer between September 2014 and January 2015. According to the complaint, neither she nor her treating physicians were warned that Taxotere could cause permanent hair loss. Read More
• May 2016: A Mississippi woman has filed  a Taxotere lawsuit claiming that Sanofi-Aventis failed to adequately warn doctors and patients that the drug caused permanent hair loss at a far greater rate than other, equally effective chemotherapy agents. According to the May 31st filing in the U.S. District Court, Southern District of Mississippi, the Plaintiff was diagnosed with left breast cancer with lymph node involvement in 2013, and underwent chemotherapy that included Taxotere, which resulted in permanent alopecia. Read More
• May 2016: Two new Taxotere lawsuits have been filed in Texas and Mississippi federal courts. Both complaints accuse Sanofi-Aventis of withholding information about the potential for Taxotere to cause permanent hair loss, and of making false and misleading statements to doctors about the efficacy of the chemotherapy agents. Read More
• March 2016: A Colorado woman has joined the growing Taxotere hair loss litigation. According to a complaint filed in the U.S. District Court, District of Colorado, the breast cancer survivor has experienced ongoing alopecia since undergoing treatment with Taxotere in 2013.  The plaintiff claims that neither she nor her doctors were told that Taxotere-related alopecia could be permanent.  Since alternative and equally effective medications were available, the complaint asserts that the plaintiff was deprived of a chance to make an informed decision about her treatment. Read More
• March 2016: A California woman files suit accusing Sanoafi-Aventis of downplaying Taxotere’s link with permanent hair loss. The complaint charges that the drug maker’s conduct caused thousands of patients to undergo chemotherapy with a medication that was far more toxic than its equally effective competitors. Read More
• January 2016:  On Ohio woman who allegedly suffered permanent alopecia after undergoing Taxotere chemotherapy for breast cancer files suit in federal court, accusing Sanofi-Aventis of concealing this devastating side effect from patients and doctors. The lawsuit points out that warnings about permanent hair loss were added to the Taxotere labels in Europe and Canada years ago, while the U.S. label wasn’t updated until 2015. Read More

Taxotere: What’s the Problem?

Taxotere is a chemotherapy agent that is usually administered in conjunction with other cancer drugs. In addition to breast cancer, the medication is indicated to treat head and neck cancer; gastric cancer, prostate cancer and non-small cell lung cancer.

Hair loss is a well known side effect of chemotherapy, and Taxotere is no exception. Patients undergoing Taxotere treatment were led to believe that alopecia associated with its use would be temporary. However, it now appears that Taxotere may increase the risk of permanent hair loss.

FDA Orders Taxotere Label Change

In December 2015, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) updated the Taxotere label to warn about the possibility of permanent hair loss. The Adverse Reactions section of the label now notes that: “Cases of permanent alopecia have been reported.”

Studies Suggest Taxotere Hair Loss May be Permanent

A few studies conducted in recent years have suggested that alopecia may be permanent in some patients treated with Taxotere:

• A study published by the Rocky Mountain Cancer Center indicated that 6.3% of patients may experience this side effect as a result of Taxotere.
• In 2010, a paper published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology noted “an increasing number of reports of permanent chemotherapy-induced alopecia.” Taxotere was thought responsile for some of the cases.
• In 2013, a survey conducted by the Clatterbridge Cancer Center in the U.K. suggested that that permanent alopecia could affect 10-15% of breast cancer survivors treated with Taxotere. Read More

Woman Discuss Taxotere Baldness

Women from Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom are increasingly going public with their stories of permanent baldness following Toxotere therapy.

“They absolutely told me my hair will grow back,” one patient told The Globe and Mail in 2010. “I will never be well of breast cancer because of this. My life is not over, but my life is drastically changed.”

“There never seemed to be any doubt that my thick, shoulder-length auburn hair – my crowning glory – would grow back,” another breast cancer patient told the U.K.’s Daily Mail that same year. “I wore scarves and hats quite happily until I finished treatment in early 2006 and waited patiently for my hair to appear – yet it only came back in an extremely sparse way that resembles male-pattern baldness and means that I have to regularly shave my head because it looks even worse than having no hair at all.”

The women interviewed for both articles were incensed that they had not been warned about the possibility for permanent hair loss with Taxotere, robbing them of the chance to make a more informed choice about their treatment.

Schedule Your a Taxotere Legal Review

You may be able to file a Taxotere lawsuit if your experienced permanent alopecia or hair loss following chemotherapy with this medication. To arrange for a free, no-obligation legal review of your case, please call (888) 994-5118.