Taxotere Lawsuit Alleging Hair Loss and Vision Loss (2023)

FAQs

What is the Taxotere lawsuit about eye damage? ›

Over the last year, a growing number of product liability lawsuits have been filed against Sanofi by women who took Taxotere for chemotherapy and suffered permanent vision damage from excessive tearing. These lawsuits allege that Sanofi failed to provide a full and adequate warning on its product labeling for Taxotere.

Taxotere eye side effects may include:

Blurred vision. Dry eye syndrome (keratoconjunctivitis) Excessive tearing or watery eyes (epiphora) Eye irritation or itchiness.

Taxotere Hair Loss Lawsuits

In pursuing Taxotere lawsuits against Sanofi, plaintiffs argued the company had knowledge of the risks of chemotherapy-induced alopecia since 2006 but failed to take the appropriate level of responsibility to warn doctors and patients.

Patients undergoing chemotherapy with Taxol (paclitaxel) are able to regrow their hair after their course of treatment is completed. However, with Taxotere, the hair loss can be permanent. Taxotere has been used in the treatment of breast cancer for over twenty years.

As of October 2022, Taxotere litigation is still pending and there are 10,859 hair loss lawsuits and 87 lawsuits for vision problems in Louisiana federal court. There have been no Taxotere lawsuit payouts to date.

Cornea and anterior segment — Several chemotherapy agents can affect the cornea, causing dry eye, meibomian gland dysfunction and blepharitis, nonhealing epithelium and corneal melt, corneal deposits, conjunctivitis, conjunctival hemorrhage, and cataracts.

The most common long-term side effects of docetaxel are two types of nerve damage called sensory and motor peripheral neuropathy. Although it is less common, patients have also reported hair loss that lasts for years and appears to be permanent. In extremely rare cases, patients have developed leukemia.

Tell your doctor right away if you have vision changes, such as blurred vision, difficulty reading, or eye pain with this medicine. These could be symptoms of a serious eye problem called cystoid macular edema. Your doctor may want your eyes be checked by an ophthalmologist (eye doctor).

An eagerly-awaited bellwether trial for the Taxotere hair-loss lawsuits took place at the end of 2021, resulting in a Louisiana judge finding in favor of Sanofi. This was a second bellwether trial (the first took place in 2019, which Sanofi also won).

What percentage of Taxotere patients have permanent hair loss? ›

Taxotere manufacturer, Sanofi-Aventis, alleges that long-term alopecia–permanent hair loss–only occurs in about three percent of patients. This differs from the findings of other studies, which identified a higher risk of permanent baldness.

It was neoadjuvant chemotherapy, including Taxanes (Taxotere), Carboplatin, and Trastuzumab (Herceptin). Days 4 and 5 were the hardest: nausea or just energy, emotions. Got better on Day 6 and got better on Day 7.

Conclusions: Both docetaxel and paclitaxel may cause permanent scalp hair loss, but it is significantly more prevalent with docetaxel compared with paclitaxel.

As long as the hair follicles have not been permanently destroyed by Taxotere, the hair should regrow. But up to about 6% of Taxotere patients have permanent hair follicle damage.

How Long Does a Bellwether Trial Last? Personal injury trials such as bellwether trials in mass torts can take anywhere from days to weeks or longer. How long these trials will last depends on the individual factors in each individual case.

You may begin to lose your hair about two weeks after the first treatment, but it can happen earlier. Hair loss is usually gradual but it can happen very quickly, possibly over a couple of days. Scalp cooling may stop you losing some, or all, of the hair on your head.

Your care team will deliver the most precise dose to destroy cancer cells. But sometimes radiation can damage the retina and optic nerve, leading to vision loss. These side effects can first appear up to 18 months after treatment and are often permanent, Al-Zubidi says.

With the advent of more aggressive cytotoxic chemotherapy regimens, the incidence of ocular toxicity due to these drugs is also on the rise. We report a case of Presumed Chemotherapy-Induced optic neuropathy and maculopathy secondary to treatment with cytarabine and daunorubicin for Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML).

Does chemo cause permanent damage? ›

Chemotherapy and radiation therapy can cause long-term side effects to the brain, spinal cord, and nerves. These include: Hearing loss from high doses of chemotherapy, especially drugs like cisplatin (multiple brand names) Increased risk of stroke from high doses of radiation to the brain.

In general, the chemotherapy drug- Docetaxel may take 2-3 days to leave the body altogether. Precautions such as staying hydrated during the chemotherapy may help flush off the excess drug dose out of the system.

Twenty-one patients developed mild to moderate sensory neuropathy on taxotere at a wide range of cumulative doses (50 to 750 mg/m2) and dose levels (10 to 115 mg/m2). Ten of these patients also developed weakness of varying degree in proximal and distal extremities.

Infections. Chemotherapy can reduce your body's ability to fight infection. This makes you more likely to get infections that could make you seriously ill.

It generally takes about 48 to 72 hours for your body to break down and/or get rid of most chemo drugs.

Early studies indicated that Taxotere might be more aggressive and successful at eliminating cancerous cells in the body because the drug could infiltrate the cell at higher levels than Taxol.

Most people say it takes 6 to 12 months after they finish chemotherapy before they truly feel like themselves again. Read the resource Managing Cognitive Changes for more information about managing chemo brain.

Many women who receive taxane-based chemotherapy to treat breast cancer experience long-term peripheral neuropathy, according to follow-up data from a large clinical trial.

Docetaxel extended predicted survival by an average of 0.89 years for patients with metastatic disease and 0.78 years for patients without metastatic disease.

The studies showed reduced retinal thickness, primarily in the retinal nerve fibre layer, and impaired inner retinal function in patients receiving chemotherapy. In summary, the current literature suggests chemotherapy may induce visual pathway degeneration.

Is there a lawsuit for permanent hair loss? ›

Taxotere Lawsuits - Permanent Hair Loss Injuries. The Taxotere lawsuit claims the manufacturer of Taxotere (Sanofi-Aventis) failed to warn patients and physicians of the increased risks of permanent alopecia (loss of hair).

Has Taxotere Been Recalled? With the side effects of Taxotere, you may want to know if the authorities have recalled it. The U.S. FDA has not pulled the drug from the market. However, that Taxotere is still legally circulating doesn't affect your lawsuit against the manufacturer.

Taxotere has an average rating of 4.8 out of 10 from a total of 10 reviews on Drugs.com. 33% of reviewers reported a positive experience, while 56% reported a negative experience.

They can tell you what to expect. Fortunately, most of the time hair loss from chemotherapy is temporary. You can expect to regrow your hair three to six months after your treatment ends, though your hair may temporarily be a different shade or texture.

three months). The SWOG trial investigators reported a 27-percent increase in disease-progression-free survival and a 55-percent increase in objective response rate in the Taxotere®-containing arm. In addition, the majority of patients had a PSA decline of more than 50 percent.

Hair loss is often complete scalp hair loss and can involve loss of eyebrows, eyelashes, and pubic hair. You may notice this a few days or weeks after treatment has started. Most often hair loss is temporary; your hair should grow back when treatment is done.

The long-term side effects of cyclophosphamide (Cytoxan) are damage to the bladder and the bone marrow. Bladder cancer is a well-known risk and continues to arise at least 10-15 years after the drug was given.

Short, planned delays in chemotherapy for good-risk GCT patients (less than or equal to 7 days per cycle) appear to be acceptable since they may prevent serious toxicity in this curable patient population. Delays of longer than 7 days are strongly discouraged except in extraordinary life-threatening circumstances.

Doxorubicin is considered one of the strongest chemotherapy drugs for breast cancer ever invented. It can kill cancer cells at every point in their life cycle, and it's used to treat a wide variety of cancers, not just breast cancer. Doxorubicin is also known as “The Red Devil” because it is a clear bright red color.

How many cycles of docetaxel can you have? ›

In a clinical trial of docetaxel for CRPC, the frequencies of PN were 32% [1] (maximum 10 cycles) and 41% (maximum 12 cycles) [17]. Considering the results of the present study, the incidence of PN with docetaxel is higher in patients with CRPC than in those with other cancers.

Hair loss will usually begin gradually within two or three weeks of starting chemotherapy. For some people it may be sooner and more sudden. You may lose all or some of your hair. Your scalp might feel tender as the hair thins and falls out.

Chemo curls are generally not permanent and should reduce with time. Other changes to the color and texture of the hair should also go away as the drugs leave the body after treatment. In the meantime, gentle care and styling can make managing the hair much more straightforward.

Only riboflavin, biotin, folate, and vitamin B12 deficiencies have been associated with hair loss.

Hair loss is a relatively rare side effect, but a variety of medications may cause it: beta-blockers, blood thinners, antidepressants, cholesterol-lowering drugs, certain nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and hormone-related drugs like thyroid meds, hormone replacement therapies or steroids.

If your chemotherapy drug causes hair thinning you may also lose your brows and lashes. Hair falls out during chemotherapy due to a temporary disruption to the Hair growth cycle. Your eyebrows and lashes will normally start to re-grow once your chemotherapy treatment is complete.

The most common long-term side effects of docetaxel are two types of nerve damage called sensory and motor peripheral neuropathy. Although it is less common, patients have also reported hair loss that lasts for years and appears to be permanent. In extremely rare cases, patients have developed leukemia.

Your care team will deliver the most precise dose to destroy cancer cells. But sometimes radiation can damage the retina and optic nerve, leading to vision loss. These side effects can first appear up to 18 months after treatment and are often permanent, Al-Zubidi says.

Twenty-one patients developed mild to moderate sensory neuropathy on taxotere at a wide range of cumulative doses (50 to 750 mg/m2) and dose levels (10 to 115 mg/m2). Ten of these patients also developed weakness of varying degree in proximal and distal extremities.

In general, the chemotherapy drug- Docetaxel may take 2-3 days to leave the body altogether. Precautions such as staying hydrated during the chemotherapy may help flush off the excess drug dose out of the system.

When does hair fall out after Taxotere? ›

Your hair may become thin, brittle, or may fall out. This typically begins two to three weeks after treatment starts. This hair loss can be all body hair, including pubic, underarm, legs/arms, eyelashes, and nose hairs. The use of scarves, wigs, hats, and hairpieces may help.

Paclitaxel and nanoparticle albumin-bound paclitaxel are known to cause adverse events of eye disorders, such as cystoid macular edema. However, at present, the risk factors remain unclear. Therefore, risk factors for eye disorders caused by paclitaxel and nanoparticle albumin-bound paclitaxel were studied.