Depo-Provera Meningioma Warning Update Should Be Added to Birth Control Shot: Lawsuit

Lawsuit claims Pfizer had evidence as early as 1983 that the active ingredient in Depo-Provera may interact with meningioma cells and accelerate tumor growth.

A Depo-Provera meningioma lawsuit by an Alabama woman argues she and millions of other recipients of the birth control injections should have been warned that the shots carried an increased risk of intracranial meningioma development.

The complaint (PDF) was filed by Christine McCree in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida on April 13, alleging that Pfizer Inc., Pharmacia & Upjohn Co. LLC, and Pharmacia LLC failed to design a reasonably safe product, and failed to warn women about the potential risk of brain tumors.

Depo-Provera was first introduced in the U.S. in 1992 as a long-acting hormonal contraceptive requiring quarterly injections of medroxyprogesterone acetate, a synthetic progestin designed to prevent pregnancy. Over the last several decades, the “Depo shot,” as it is commonly known, has been given to tens of millions of women worldwide.

However, despite the manufacturers’ claims that the injections are safe and effective, concerns emerged in 2024 following studies linking Depo-Provera side effects to meningioma risks. The data indicates women on the receiving end of Depo-Provera injections face more than a five-fold risk of developing intracranial meningioma when compared to women who did not receive the injections. These brain tumors can cause serious, potentially life-threatening complications, often requiring brain surgery and life-long medical monitoring.

McCree’s complaint joins nearly 3,500 similar Depo-Provera meningioma lawsuits filed by women nationwide, each alleging that the manufacturers knew, or should have known, about the potential intracranial meningioma risks associated with the injections.

Depo-Provera Meningioma Allegations

According to the lawsuit, McCree began receiving Depo-Provera injections in 2007 and continued using the contraceptive through 2025. She was diagnosed with an intracranial meningioma in 2020, but the complaint indicates that neither she nor her doctor knew the brain tumor could be linked to Depo-Provera because the drug’s label did not provide adequate warnings.

McCree alleges that Pfizer ignored scientific evidence suggesting the hormone used in Depo-Provera can interact with meningioma tumor receptors, potentially fueling the growth of an existing tumor or contributing to the development of a new one. Despite that evidence, the complaint claims the manufacturer failed to add adequate warnings to the drug’s label.

“The association between progesterone and meningioma has been known or knowable for decades to, sophisticated pharmaceutical corporations like Defendants engaging in FDA-required post-market surveillance of their products for potential safety issues, but withheld this information from the public and the medical community including, in particular, medical providers prescribing Depo-Provera.”

– Christine McCree v. Pfizer Inc. et al

The lawsuit notes that while McCree only learned of the connection between Depo-Provera and intracranial meningioma development recently, Pfizer had data at its disposal warning of the relationship since at least 1983.

She presents claims of failure to warn, design defect, negligence, negligent failure to warn, negligent design defect, negligent misrepresentation, fraudulent misrepresentation, and breach of warranty, seeking both compensatory and punitive damages.

Depo-Provera Meningioma Lawsuits

McCree’s case will now move forward as part of the coordinated federal Depo-Provera proceedings in the Northern District of Florida, where U.S. District Judge M. Casey Rodgers is overseeing discovery and other pretrial matters involving claims filed by women across the country.

The consolidation is intended to make the litigation more efficient by allowing the parties to focus on common issues, including the scientific evidence surrounding intracranial meningioma risks, the history of Depo-Provera’s warning label, and what the manufacturers knew about the potential connection between the birth control shot and brain tumors.

One of the next major steps in the litigation will center on general causation, meaning whether plaintiffs can present reliable scientific evidence showing that Depo-Provera is capable of causing intracranial meningioma brain tumors. Judge Rodgers is scheduled to hold hearings on that issue from June 24 through 26, 2026, after rescheduling the proceedings from late May due to a conflict in the court’s calendar.

Those hearings are expected to play a critical role in shaping the course of the litigation, since plaintiffs must clear that threshold before juries can hear the core expert testimony linking the birth control shot to meningioma development. If that evidence is allowed, the litigation will move toward the first bellwether trials, which are currently scheduled to begin in December 2026.

The early trials will involve a small group of representative cases selected to help both sides gauge how juries may respond to the scientific evidence, warning label history, and other recurring issues likely to arise throughout the litigation. While any bellwether verdicts will not be binding on other plaintiffs, they could have a major influence on settlement negotiations and the future direction of the Depo-Provera meningioma lawsuits.

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