Court Dismisses Taxotere Lawsuits Filed After December 2015

Court Dismisses Taxotere Lawsuits Filed After December 2015

Introduction

Taxotere lawsuits' presiding Judge Jane Triche Milazzo passed a defense motion to dismiss the cases filed after December 2015, when new warning labels were added about the risk of permanent hair loss associated with the chemotherapy drug.

A court order over the dismissal was issued on May 27 by Judge Milazzo. The motion included nearly 200 cases that sued Sanofi-Aventis, manufacturer of chemotherapy drug, Taxotere, administered for the treatment of breast cancer, or other forms of cancer. The lawsuits allege that the drug caused permanent alopecia, also known as permanent hair loss.

The motion rooted in the fact that in December 2015, the Taxotere label was updated to specifically warn about the risk of permanent alopecia, asking the court to grant summary judgment against these hundreds of plaintiffs as they were treated after the label change. The defendants alternatively argued that their claims were preempted.

Taxotere, also known as docetaxel, is a chemotherapy drug that doctors prescribe to treat several different cancers, mostly breast cancer. While the drug is effective at treating breast cancer, it is associated with several side effects, ranging from common skin reactions to very rare instances of leukemia.
 
Since Taxotere is a strong chemotherapy drug, its side effects tend to be more extreme than drugs that treat less serious issues such as high cholesterol or blood pressure. Doctors may lower the dose or prescribe drugs that reduce the risk of allergic reactions to deal with these types of side effects. 
 
The drug carries a black box warning that includes five complications that can be severe or fatal: toxic death, low blood cell counts, liver toxicity, fluid retention, and hypersensitivity reactions.
 
Taxotere can occur during treatment or shortly after. Doctors check liver, kidney, and bone marrow function to make sure a patient can tolerate the chemotherapy drug and that any acute reactions can be treated.
 
Low white blood cell counts, also called neutropenia, can occur in people who take Taxotere. A more serious version accompanied by fever is called febrile neutropenia. Sometimes, it can be serious enough to cause an infection that requires hospitalization.
 
Neutropenia is a common side effect of most chemotherapy drugs. Usually, white blood cell counts drop around 10 days to 14 days after patients first get chemotherapy.

The first bellwether trial, held in September 2019, favored the drugmaker, over which the plaintiff is currently appealing. Plans for three other trials have been put on hold due to the current COVID-19 pandemic. Also, according to a case management order issued on May 26, the addition of a fifth bellwether trial along with four more claims to the pool was announced by Judge Milazzo.