There is ample evidence alleging that since Taxotere’s 1996 FDA approval, Sanofi launched an aggressive, misleading marketing campaign that actively concealed evidence of the drug’s negative side effects, including permanent alopecia.
Independent studies report 6-9% of Taxotere patients suffer from chemo-induced alopecia lasting longer than three years. The company’s internal studies—dating back to the late 1990’s—show they knew up to 10% of patients would be affected. In 2014, a National Cancer Conference presentation placed the affected percentage at 15%.Despite these studies—both independent and internal—Sanofi’s publicly available materials significantly downplay the risk and fail to transparently disclose these statistics.
As you might imagine, as little as possible. Sanofi’s official statement is they are “unable” to disclose how many Taxotere patients are affected by permanent alopecia. Both Sanofi and the European Medicines Agency (EMEA) claim this kind of data “…[is] not routinely collected.”Most of the data available comes from the determination of Shirley Ledlie, a UK national living in France, who experienced permanent alopecia following the use of Taxotere. Ledlie’s struggle to hold the corporation accountable is chronicled in her memoir, “Naked in the Wind: Chemo, Hair Loss, and Deceit.”In 2009, Sanofi responded to Ledlie’s requests for information, saying they were “… unable to provide figures” for the number of Taxotere patients affected with alopecia. They referred Ledlie to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA)—responsible for monitoring pharmaceuticals and medical devices—who informed Ledlie that alopecia was reported to be a “very common” side effect of the chemotherapy drug, with an incidence of 1 in 10.Currently, Taxotere’s official prescribing information discloses only that “most” patients lose their hair during treatment, and that the hair will “generally” grow back. With regard to reports of permanent alopecia and usage of their pharmaceutical, Sanofi’s official word on the matter is the “… frequency [is] not known.”[/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section][et_pb_section bb_built="1" admin_label="section" fullwidth="off" specialty="off" inner_shadow="off" parallax="off" transparent_background="off" allow_player_pause="off" parallax_method="on" make_fullwidth="off" use_custom_width="off" width_unit="on" make_equal="off" use_custom_gutter="off" custom_css_main_element="z-index: 1;" module_id="contactCTA" module_class="injuryPage injuryContact" custom_padding="0px||0px|" custom_padding_last_edited="on|phone"][et_pb_row admin_label="Row" allow_player_pause="off" parallax="off" parallax_method="on" parallax_1="off" parallax_method_1="off" parallax_2="off" parallax_method_2="off" make_fullwidth="on" use_custom_width="off" width_unit="on" use_custom_gutter="off" make_equal="on" custom_padding="35px|5%|10px|5%" custom_padding_last_edited="on|desktop" module_class_1="ds-vertical-align" module_class_2="ds-vertical-align" background_color="#101a31" custom_margin_last_edited="on|phone" custom_padding_phone="25px|5%|25px|5%" module_class="et_pb_animation_bottom et-animated et-waypoint"][et_pb_column type="4_4"][et_pb_text admin_label="Final CTA: Desktop" background_layout="dark" text_orientation="center" use_border_color="off" border_color="#ffffff" border_style="solid" module_class="et_pb_animation_bottom et-animated et-waypoint" disabled="off" disabled_on="off||" custom_padding="||0px|" custom_margin_last_edited="on|phone" custom_margin="||25px|" custom_margin_phone="||5px|"]
There is a limited window to pursue help. As settlements for Taxotere injuries are now being negotiated, take our 30-second survey to see if you qualify... before it's too late.
[/et_pb_text][et_pb_button admin_label="Button" button_text="SEE IF YOU QUALIFY NOW" url_new_window="off" button_alignment="center" background_layout="dark" custom_button="off" button_letter_spacing="0" button_use_icon="default" button_icon_placement="right" button_on_hover="on" button_letter_spacing_hover="0" button_url="/injury-survey-taxotere-step1?tort=Taxotere&utm_source=blog" disabled_on="on||" disabled="off" custom_css_main_element="color: #ffffff !important;||margin: 0px !important;" module_class="et_pb_animation_bottom et-animated et-waypoint" /][et_pb_button admin_label="Button (Mobile)" button_text="FIND OUT NOW" url_new_window="off" button_alignment="center" background_layout="dark" custom_button="off" button_letter_spacing="0" button_use_icon="default" button_icon_placement="right" button_on_hover="on" button_letter_spacing_hover="0" button_url="/injury-survey-taxotere-step1?tort=Taxotere&utm_source=blog" disabled_on="off|on|on" disabled="off" custom_css_main_element="color: #ffffff !important;||margin: 0px !important;" module_class="et_pb_animation_bottom et-animated et-waypoint" /][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section][et_pb_section bb_built="1" admin_label="section" transparent_background="off" allow_player_pause="off" inner_shadow="off" parallax="off" parallax_method="on" make_fullwidth="off" use_custom_width="off" width_unit="on" make_equal="off" use_custom_gutter="off" custom_padding_phone="0px|||" custom_padding_last_edited="on|phone"][et_pb_row admin_label="row"][et_pb_column type="4_4"][et_pb_text admin_label="Text" background_layout="light" text_orientation="left" use_border_color="off" border_color="#ffffff" border_style="solid"]
Survivors have banded together online, calling themselves “Taxotears” and affectionately nicknaming Ledlie “Taxoterrorist,” for her perseverance in holding Sanofi accountable. Their stories of grief are consistent: “Taxotears” feel less feminine, less beautiful, and less self-confident because of their hair loss. They feel stigmatized in public because they still present as “cancer patients.” They share stories of depression, anxiety, feelings of disfigurement, grief, and a lack of desire to engage in social activities because of their hair loss. These patients also report that many doctors (as well as the general public) respond with, “You should be thankful to be alive,” as though life and quality of life are an “Either / Or” choice.This dismisses the principles that Taxotere patients stridently fight for: transparency and accountability. Its primary market competition is a drug called Taxol, which does not have the same incidence of permanent alopecia. Most patients were never informed that there was an alternative, to say nothing of the fact that Taxotere’s risks were withheld or downplayed.It’s not that these patients aren’t happy to be alive. They are. It’s not even that none of them would have taken Taxotere anyway—some of them might have. Their anger comes from the fact that they were not given the facts and allowed to make an informed decision, or provided with any alternative courses of treatment.
