As if being diagnosed or suffering through cancer isn’t enough, worrying about hair growth after chemo should not have to be a concern.

However, an increasing number of women affected by breast cancer have reported that Taxotere side effects have caused them to suffer permanent chemotherapy hair loss.

What is Taxotere?

Manufactured by Sanofi-Aventis, Taxotere is given through injection as an anti-cancer chemotherapy drug that also goes by the generic name Docetaxel.

Taxotere is categorized as a “plant alkaloid” and was approved by the FDA in 2006 for treatment of breast cancer, non-small cell lung cancer, advanced stomach cancer, head and neck cancer, and metastatic prostate cancer.

The chemotherapy drug is also being studied to treat small cell lung cancer, ovarian cancer, bladder and pancreatic cancer, soft tissue sarcoma and melanoma.

Hair Loss and Other Taxotere Side Effects

Taxotere is associated with side effects common for chemotherapy drugs, including mouth sores, nausea, excessive fatigue, muscle or bone pain, and low platelet count.

Other known Taxotere side effects include the following:

• Weakness
• Light-headed feeling
• Nausea
• Fever and chills
• Swelling of the ankles and feet
• Redness, swelling, and irritation at the injection site

Additionally, while temporary hair loss may be a possible side effect of chemotherapy, complete and permanent hair loss has been linked to Taxotere side effects. In 2010, Sanofi-Aventis removed language from its label that “hair generally grows back.”

This hair loss issue was supported by two studies. One study, published in 2012 in the Annals of Oncology, involved 20 women who had breast cancer chemotherapy and had taken Taxotere. Researchers found that no hair growth after chemo was noted.

The research, conducted between 2007 and 2011, even involved regrowth treatments including vitamins and ultraviolet A therapy, but still no hair growth after chemo was observed.

Another study, published in the 2011 American Journal of Dermatopathology found that “there is increased evidence that certain chemotherapy regimens can cause dose-dependent permanent alopecia,” including Taxotere.

In December 2015, the FDA recommended and Sanofi-Aventis added in the Adverse Reactions section of the Taxotere label that:  “Cases of permanent hair loss have been reported.”

Taxotere Hair Loss Lawsuits

Many patients were reportedly told that Taxotere side effects may cause them to only experience temporary chemotherapy hair loss. However, some recent reports have found that the chemotherapy hair loss experienced may actually be permanent.

An increasing number of women have reported permanent chemotherapy hair loss to the FDA as a result of being treated with Taxotere, claiming that they were not warned of a potential side effect of permanent hair loss.

While it is a common side effect for cancer patients to lose body hair during treatment, warnings of permanent chemotherapy hair loss were not added to the Taxotere label until December 2015, much too late for many women who not already had to suffer through cancer treatment, but now permanent hair loss as well.

Women who were given Taxotere and experienced no hair growth after chemo treatment may be eligible to receive substantial compensation for the emotional pain and suffering caused by Taxotere side effects.