A lawsuit regarding permanent hair loss after Taxotere has been filed by a woman who underwent chemotherapy 14 years ago.

Cynthia says she was administered Taxotere from April 2003 to September 2003. She alleges she has since experienced permanent hair loss after Taxotere, also known as “disfiguring permanent alopecia.”

Cynthia B.’s complaint is part of a multidistrict litigation against the drug’s makers, Sanofi S.A., Aventis Pharma S.A., Sanofi US Services Inc., formerly known as Sanofi-Aventis U.S. Inc., and Sanofi-Aventis U.S. LLC.

Taxotere (docetaxel) is a chemotherapy drug most often used to treat breast cancer. Taxotere is one of a family drugs known collectively as taxanes because the active ingredient comes from a plants of the genus taxus. Another common taxane is Taxol (paclitaxel).

Hair loss after Taxotere is permanent for many patients. Women suffering from permanent alopecia have no hair on their heads, no eyebrows, no eyelashes, and no body hair. The suffer psychological damage that lasts for years even if their cancer is gone.

Hair Loss After Taxotere Lawsuit Points to False Claims

Taxotere was FDA-approved in May 1996, and its original label said it was suitable for patients with “locally advanced or metastic breast cancer after failure of prior chemotherapy.”

Eventually, Taxotere was approved for additional indications. Taxotere’s high potency led its makers to claim it was superior over other chemotherapy options in treating breast cancer. Taxotere most notably claimed superiority over Taxol, which had a lower potency and was Taxotere’s main competitor.

But according to plaintiffs like Cynthia, post-market studies showed that Taxotere does not offer benefits over Taxol or other less potent taxanes, and Taxotere’s makers allegedly “concealed the existence of studies from the FDA, physicians, and patients that refuted” Taxotere’s claims.

According to the hair loss after Taxotere lawsuit, “[a] study of available clinical studies concerning the relative efficacy of taxanes in the treatment of breast cancer, published in the August 2007 journal Cancer Treatment Review, concluded that no significant differences were found in the efficacy and outcomes obtained with Taxotere (docetaxel) or Taxol (paclitaxel).”

Sanofi-Aventis continued to claim that Taxotere was superior in 2008 when it used old marketing materials that said Taxotere patients had a greater response rate and longer survival time at the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

The FDA sent Sanofi-Aventis a warning letter, advising the company to stop overstating Taxotere’s effectiveness.

The hair loss after Taxotere lawsuit also says a former employee accused “Sanofi-Aventis and its affiliates of engaging in a fraudulent marketing scheme, paying kickbacks, and providing other unlawful incentives to entice physicians to use docetaxel (Taxotere).” These allegations resulted in a qui tam (whistleblower) lawsuit.

Plaintiffs claim the marketing scheme allegedly caused thousands of more patients to endure Taxotere’s increased toxic effects when they could have otherwise chosen less toxic options that could have been just as effective.

Even though hair loss is common after chemotherapy treatments, most patients’ hair grows back over time.

If you or someone you love has suffered permanent hair loss after Taxotere, you could benefit from speaking with an attorney regarding your options for compensation.

The Hair Loss After Taxotere Lawsuit is Case No. 2:17-cv-11629-KDE-MBN and is part of the Taxotere Hair Loss MDL, In re: Taxotere (Docetaxel) Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2740 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana.