Depo Provera is an injectable contraceptive manufactured by Pfizer Inc. that has been widely used by women in the United States since the year 1974 when it was launched. The drug is under a shadow of controversy after a study claimed that it causes brain and spinal tumors called meninigiomas. Meningiomas are benign tumors that develop in brain or spinal tissues. Despite being benign in nature, meningiomas have the potential to cause brain or spinal damage because they grow and intrude into the brain and spinal tissues.
Many women who are suffering from meningiomas as a result of taking Depo Provera have filed lawsuits against the manufacturer of this drug, Pfizer Inc. The lawsuits allege that Pfizer failed to warn its consumers of the risk of developing meningiomas associated with Depo Provera. As per the accusations, Pfizer knew or should have known about the increased risk of meningiomas to which the patients were exposed as a result of using Depo Provera.
Multiple Depo Provera lawsuits have been consolidated into a multi district litigation or MDL. Altogether, 78 pending lawsuits against Pfizer have been transferred to the MDL. However, this number is likely to increase as more plaintiffs come forward to file lawsuits in this matter.
Origins of the Controversy
In March 2024, a study published in the British Medical Journal found that medroxyprogesterone acetate, the active ingredient of Depo Provera, increases the risk of developing intracranial meninigioma by 5.6%, if used for more than a year. The study noted that progestin-based contraceptives like Depo Provera are linked to increased risk of meningiomas because hormone progestin may promote tumor growth through progesterone receptors.
US Food and Drug Administration approved Depo Provera as a contraceptive in the year 1974. However, concerns over cancer risk prompted the body to rescind the approval in the year 1978. Depo Provera hit the market as a contraceptive yet again in the year 1992. It is pertinent to note here that European Union and Canada added a warning regarding the link between Depo Provera and meninigioma to the drug’s label, years before its users in the United States became aware of the same.
Lawsuits Filed
In April 2024, Pfizer acknowledged the findings of the survey published in British Medical Journal. However, the company did not include the warning regarding meninigioma on the drug’s label. First Depo Provera lawsuit was filed in October 2024 by a woman, Kristina Schmidt, residing in California. She was diagnosed with meninigioma at the age of 37, and had used Depo Provera in the 2005-2021 period.
In November 2024, three federal Depo Provera lawsuits were filed against Pfizer and other defendants by plaintiffs in California, Nevada and Missouri. By the end of November, 22 Depo Provera lawsuits had been filed across multiple states with the majority being in California especially in the Northern District.
In December 2024, a motion was filed with the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation to consolidate the various lawsuits against the manufacturers of Depo Provera in a federal court in the Northern District of California. The motion argued that consolidation of the lawsuits would make the legal process more smooth for the victims.
Current Status
On January 30, 2025, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation held a hearing on the motion filed before it to consolidate the Depo Provera lawsuits in a federal court. While the plaintiffs sought to consolidate the lawsuits in California, Pfizer wanted the case to shift to New York. Meanwhile, newer Depo Provera lawsuits kept coming up.
In February 2025, the JPML consolidated the increasing number of Depo Provera lawsuits in the Northern District of Florida in the court of Judge Casey Rogers. As of March 2025, 78 pending cases make up the Depo Provera MDL. Five cases have been selected from the MDL for the first trials.
The Defendants
Pfizer is the main defendant in the Depo Provera lawsuits. This because Pfizer produces and labels the drug Depo Provera since acquiring Pharmacia & Upjohn in the year 2002. Other defendants in the case are Pharmacia & Upjohn for being the original manufacturer of Depo Provera, Greenstone LLC for acting as an authorized generic distributor of Depo Provera, Vistris Inc. for participating in the distribution and sale of Depo Provera, and Prasco Labs on account of being another authorized generic distributor of Depo Provera.