Investigation into Chemotherapy Drug Taxotere

Stueve Siegel Hanson is investigating the prescription drug Taxotere which has been associated with a permanent lack of hair regrowth in women. Taxotere is one of two major chemotherapy drugs used in breast cancer treatment.  While most women should get their hair back after their last chemo treatment, studies show that 9% of women, even as high as 20%, will be affected with permanent alopecia (hair loss) after using Taxotere.

Taxotere (Docetaxel) is primarily manufactured by Sanofi-Aventis, a multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in France and one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world.  According to one lawsuit filed, Sanofi-Aventis knew as early as 2005 that the drug may cause permanent alopecia in as many as 9% of Taxotere patients and intentionally withheld this information from the medical community and the public. When the Taxotere patent expired in 2011 several other pharmaceutical companies started manufacturing Taxotere (Docetaxel). These companies include Hospira, Inc., Accord Healthcare, Sandoz Inc., Actavis LLC, Pfizer Inc., and Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, Inc.

The Taxotere Products Liability Litigation is primarily occurring in the United States District Court Eastern District of Louisiana under the direction of the Honorable Jane Triche Milazzo. The Court Website can be found here. 

Currently the Taxotere cases are in discovery, which involves each side examining records, documents, other information from all parties, and taking depositions.  This process is conducted to reveal facts and develop evidence before trial. Several cases from the total group of cases have been selected as bellwether trials. The first bellwether trial is scheduled to begin on May 13, 2019.  Bellwether trials are cases the Court and the parties select to test their arguments, with the goal of moving the overall litigation towards resolution as well as identify cases where dismissal may be appropriate.  While the outcomes of these early trials are not binding on other cases, they are designed to help the parties’ gauge how juries may respond to certain evidence and testimony that is likely to be repeated throughout the litigation.  The outcomes in the bellwether trials may facilitate settlements or identify other results for clients. 

If you or someone you know was treated for breast cancer by Taxotere (Docetaxel) and has experienced a major lack of hair regrowth which has resulted in permanent alopecia and wish to receive additional information about your legal options, please call 1.866.714.0875 to speak to one of our female attorneys.