Pfizer faces a major U.S. lawsuit from women alleging its Depo-Provera contraceptive injection caused brain tumors, as a Florida court considers whether the multi-billion-dollar case can proceed.
Pfizer is facing a landmark lawsuit in the United States from more than 1,000 women who allege they developed brain tumors after using its contraceptive injection, Depo-Provera.
The pharmaceutical giant is set to appear in federal court in Pensacola, Florida, where Judge Margaret Casey Rodgers will hear arguments on whether the multi-district litigation (MDL) can proceed. The outcome could set the course for thousands of pending claims, with potential damages running into billions of dollars.
Plaintiffs accuse Pfizer of failing to warn patients and doctors of the risks, particularly meningioma — a non-malignant but debilitating brain tumor. “Pfizer is attempting to avoid accountability by invoking a pre-emption defense, yet there are serious questions about whether it ever provided the FDA with the full picture,” said Virginia Buchanan, co-chair of the plaintiffs’ executive committee.
Pfizer maintains it complied with regulatory standards and that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration barred it from adding meningioma warnings to Depo-Provera’s label. The company insists the drug has been safely used worldwide for decades.
Multiple studies, including a 2024 British Medical Journal report, have linked prolonged Depo-Provera use to a five- to six-fold increased risk of meningioma.