Did you undergo chemotherapy with Taxotere and start experiencing watery eyes? Did your doctor diagnose you with canalicular stenosis or another medical condition that causes similar symptoms? If so, Hotze Runkle PLLC can assist you with your legal case and recover the financial award you deserve from the drug company.
Sanofi-Aventis initially created Taxotere to treat a range of cancers. It works by attacking and shrinking cancer cells, so they don’t spread to the body’s lymph nodes or other areas. It’s a common drug used for breast cancer, stomach cancer, prostate cancer, lung cancer, neck cancer, and head cancer. Unfortunately, there’s a list of side effects Sanofi-Aventis failed to disclose to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and consumers.
Cancer patients and survivors started noticing unusual symptoms they didn’t know could develop. The first noticeable symptom was watery eyes. Medical researchers realized through their studies that Taxotere’s secretions interact with tears while traveling through the body. That causes inflammation and damage to vital eye structures, which eventually leads to a permanent medical condition called canalicular stenosis.
If you’ve developed canalicular stenosis as a result of taking Taxotere, take our quiz. You might have legal options.
The Effects of Taxotere on a Person’s Eyes
If you’re currently or were previously on a Taxotere regimen to treat your cancer, you might have noticed your eyes were watery. You probably passed it off as a normal side effect of chemotherapy or assumed it was because of allergies. When eyes water excessively, it’s known as epiphora. It can occur when a vital eye structure called the canaliculus becomes inflamed and prevents tears from flowing from the eyes down to the nasal cavity.
Epiphora symptoms due to allergies or the common cold typically alleviate without medical intervention. Over time, the inflammation will diminish, and the eye-watering will stop. However, when the symptoms occur in a Taxotere chemo patient, an ophthalmologist will need to evaluate the condition and determine an adequate treatment plan.
If you don’t see a doctor right after symptoms begin, the condition could worsen and develop into canalicular stenosis. This is an irreversible condition that leads to obstructions and prevents tears from funneling into the nasal cavity. Once the obstruction closes the canaliculus entirely, there’s nothing that can be done to repair it.
Common symptoms you might experience include:
- Excessive watery eyes
- Eye infections
- Central vision loss
- Headaches
- Sensitivity to light
- Blurry or cloudy vision
- Dry eyes
- Swollen eyelids
If you notice any of the symptoms listed above while you’re on a Taxotere regimen or after you complete chemotherapy, notify your oncologist immediately and schedule a consultation with an ophthalmologist. You can continue chemo in St. Louis as long as your doctors monitor your health to ensure your condition doesn’t get worse.
The Reasons Taxotere Could Lead to Canalicular Stenosis
When you begin a Taxotere regimen, you could treat your cancer once a week, every other week, or once every three weeks. It will depend on the type of cancer you have and its stage. Whichever treatment schedule you’re on, Taxotere could disrupt how your tears travel through your canaliculus from your eyes.
Medical researchers performed studies on various cancer patients to determine if there’s an adverse reaction with the chemo drug. They found that secretions that travel throughout the body interact with bodily fluids, such as blood, saliva, and tears. The direct contact between the tears and secretions causes inflammation of the canaliculus.
Over time, chronic inflammation causes obstructions to form, which block tears from flowing into the nasal cavity. As a result, the tears build up on the surface of the eye and, with nowhere else to go, flow down the cheeks when the person blinks.
As the medical condition worsens, one or both canaliculus could close entirely from the inflammation. When that happens, there’s no way to reverse the effects. It’s a permanent and irreversible issue. Unfortunately, at that point, the patient typically experiences severe symptoms that impact their quality of life. An ophthalmologist could perform a surgical procedure to manage those symptoms; however, it’s invasive and comes with dangerous risks.
How to Treat Canalicular Stenosis
There’s no cure for canalicular stenosis once the canaliculi close wholly or partially. A procedure known as dacryocystorhinostomy (DCR) could potentially manage symptoms and alleviate eye inflammation. During DCR, the surgeon uses adjacent structures around the eye to build a new tunnel for tears to travel. Instead of funneling towards the canaliculus and getting trapped on the surface of the eye, the tears will bypass it and flow into the nasal cavity like usual.
In situations where the canaliculi damage is so severe that the obstruction doesn’t allow for the creation of a new passageway, CDCR might be a better option. Conjunctivodacryocystorhinostomy involves the placement of a small glass tube over the obstructed canaliculus. That facilitates the proper flow of tears around the closed eye structure.
Due to the sensitive nature of the structures throughout the eye and nose, both surgeries come with the following risks:
- Sinusitis
- Facial scars
- Eye infections
- Tissue damage
- Blindness
- Uncontrollable bleeding
- Migrating stent
- Ineffective procedure
Your doctor will perform a thorough exam to determine if you’re eligible for DCR or CDCR. For some people, it’s effective in reducing the severity of their canalicular stenosis symptoms. For others, there’s no way to manage their watery eyes safely. Depending on your health, you might not qualify for the procedure. You should also discuss the potential side effects with your medical provider before moving forward with any surgery.
Factors a Jury Might Use to Determine Your Compensation
You probably incurred expenses because of your canalicular stenosis diagnosis. Whether you needed surgery or tried to manage your symptoms, you have medical bills you need to pay, and you shouldn’t have to pay out of pocket. A jury might use the factors below to come up with an appropriate financial award for your lawsuit:
- The severity of the symptoms
- Surgical procedures required
- Permanent disability or impairment due to the medical condition
- Duration of medically necessary treatment
- Time missed from work
- Total medical costs
- Evidence proving Taxotere led to the symptoms
- Effect of the diagnosis on everyday life
- Value of future medical care needed
When you hire Hotze Runkle PLLC, your St. Louis Taxotere watery eyes lawsuit lawyer will work hard to recover the full compensation you deserve. The pharmaceutical company should be the one to compensate you for the damages caused by Taxotere chemo. Damages are the total losses associated with an accident or injury. The damages available in a Taxotere lawsuit could include the following:
- Pain and suffering
- Medical costs
- Lost wages and future earnings
- Emotional distress
- Out of pocket expenses
- Disability or disfigurement
- Diminished quality of life
Every state follows a strict deadline when it comes to filing lawsuits for damages. In Missouri, the statute of limitations is five years. That means you have five years from the injury date to pursue legal action against Sanofi-Aventis. After five years pass, you’ll lose your right to sue the drug company for compensation.
Why Hiring a Lawyer Is Crucial
Cancer affects people in many ways. It can cause physical, emotional, and financial harm. When chemotherapy begins, it can result in unpleasant symptoms while the body is adjusting to the drug. Unfortunately, Taxotere can lead to additional side effects that create stress and place more of a burden on someone.
You deserve to file a lawsuit against Sanofi-Aventis for the damage they caused, but you probably don’t know how to begin the process. There’s evidence you need to collect, deadlines to comply with, and documents to file with the civil court system. If you make any errors, you could ruin your chance of recovering the maximum compensation available. Without a lawyer’s help, most people end up with a dismissed case or settle for a low amount of money.
The St. Louis Taxotere watery eyes lawsuit lawyers from Hotze Runkle PLLC will handle every step of the legal process. We can file suit on your behalf, collect crucial evidence, and argue against the defense attorneys in court. We never back down from a fight and will use our aggressive tactics to protect your rights.
You might think you have a case against your oncologist and the cancer treatment facility you went to for the diagnosis of your medical condition. However, many physicians were unaware of the adverse reaction Taxotere could cause their patients. That’s because Sanofi-Aventis didn’t provide them with any warning of the potential dangers. The liable in this situation is the pharmaceutical company.
Find Out Your Eligibility for a Taxotere Lawsuit
At Hotze Runkle PLLC, we know how devastating it is to successfully treat cancer only to face obstacles from a new medical condition. It’s stressful, overwhelming, and seems unfair. You shouldn’t have to suffer because of the mistakes someone else made. Sanofi-Aventis was negligent in hiding the side effects of Taxotere and should face the legal consequences.
Our St. Louis Taxotere watery eyes lawsuit lawyers will fight hard for justice and pursue the maximum financial award available. We have the experience, knowledge, and resources to bring your case to court and prove the drug company was liable for the suffering you endured.
If you’re experiencing any unusual symptoms from your chemotherapy regimen, and want to know your legal options, take our Taxotere quiz today.