Sanofi faces a new lawsuit regarding Taxotere, alleging that the popular breast cancer chemotherapy agent can cause disfiguring permanent alopecia which is detrimental to a cancer survivor’s mental health.

Plaintiff April B. recently filed a lawsuit against Sanofi-Aventis U.S. LLC and Sanofi US Services Inc., alleging that she experienced disfiguring permanent alopecia after being treated with Taxotere. April says she was treated with the chemotherapy drug from July to September 2009 and later developed disfiguring permanent alopecia which has impacted her mental and emotional health.

Taxotere (docetaxel) is a chemotherapy agent commonly used in the treatment of breast cancer, although it can be used to treat other cancers. Taxotere, approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 1996, is part of the drug family of taxanes.

Unlike other chemotherapy agents, taxanes are derived from yew trees and inhibit the spread of cancer by overstabilizing the structure of cancer cells. This prevents them from breaking down and reorganizing for reproduction.

Although Taxotere effectively treats cancer as a chemotherapy agent, reports suggest that it can cause disfiguring permanent alopecia.

Alopecia and Taxotere

Hair loss is common with chemotherapy treatment and is often seen as the universal cancer signifier. This is because chemotherapy agents target fast dividing cells such as cancer cells, which ends up accidentally targeting hair follicles which are some of the fastest dividing healthy cells in the body.

Hair loss usually stops along with chemotherapy treatment completion, but April claims that numerous studies have shown that disfiguring permanent alopecia is possible with Taxotere.

In her Taxotere lawsuit, April claims that disfiguring permanent alopecia can severely impact a cancer survivor’s mental health. Society treats healthy hair as a symbol of beauty and health, meaning that women experiencing disfiguring permanent alopecia may suffer from low self esteem and self-worth problems.

“Women with cancer who experience alopecia, as compared with women with cancer who do not, report lower self-esteem, poorer body image, and a lower quality of life,” the Taxotere lawsuit claims. “Alopecia can be stigmatizing and may result in anger, anxiety, embarrassment, sadness, depression, shame, helplessness, fear, and loss of sense of self.”

April also argues that hair loss is a universal cancer signifier, meaning that cancer survivors suffering from disfiguring permanent alopecia can never escape the stigma associated with the disease. These individuals are allegedly unable to put their cancer experiences behind them, which can cause serious emotional trauma.

Apart from the mental and emotional side effects, disfiguring permanent alopecia can also have health side effects. Nose hair, eyelashes, ear hair, and other hair on the body serve important functions and protect delicate parts of the body from debris. Without this biological protection, women with disfiguring permanent alopecia are allegedly at a higher risk for permanent injuries.

April accuses the defendants of failure to warn, negligence, negligence misrepresentation, fraudulent misrepresentation, fraudulent concealment, and fraud and deceit.

The Taxotere Hair Loss Lawsuit is Case No. 2:18-cv-08154-JTM-MBN and is part of the Taxotere MDL, In re: Taxotere (docetaxel) Products Liability Litigation, Case No. 2:16-md-02740-KDE-MBN, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana.