Depo-Provera (Medroxyprogesterone) Brain Tumor (Meningioma) Mass Tort Litigation

Depo-Provera, an injectable progestin-based contraceptive manufactured by Pfizer's Pharmacia & Upjohn subsidiary, has been widely used by millions of women worldwide since its FDA approval in 1992. In 2024, a landmark French study published in the British Medical Journal found that long-term use of medroxyprogesterone acetate (the active ingredient in Depo-Provera) was associated with a more than five-fold increased risk of developing meningioma — a type of brain tumor that grows on the protective membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord. France's drug regulator moved to restrict the drug's use, and the FDA updated the Depo-Provera label in 2024 to add a warning about the meningioma risk.

Plaintiffs allege that Pfizer knew or should have known about the link between prolonged Depo-Provera use and meningioma development long before the label was updated, and that the company failed to adequately warn patients or healthcare providers. The lawsuits assert claims of strict products liability (failure to warn and design defect), negligence, fraudulent misrepresentation, and breach of warranty. Many plaintiffs required brain surgery to remove meningiomas after years of Depo-Provera use. The litigation is rapidly growing, with hundreds of individual cases filed in federal courts across the country and efforts underway to consolidate cases into a multidistrict litigation (MDL).