Long-Term Side Effects of Depo-Provera Caused Meningioma and Hearing Loss, Lawsuit Says

Lawsuit notes scientific research dating back to the 1980s has linked DMPA, the active ingredient in Depo-Provera, to growth of meningioma brain tumors.

According to a Pennsylvania woman’s product liability lawsuit, nearly 20 years of Depo-Provera injections caused her to develop a meningioma brain tumor, which has resulted in hearing problems and left her at risk of experiencing other long-term side effects.

Jennifer Yesensky filed the complaint (PDF) on February 24, naming Pfizer, Inc., Pharmacia & Upjohn Company LLC and Pharmacia LLC as defendants. She claims the manufacturers failed to provide adequate warnings to women who relied on the injections as a safe, trouble-free form of birth control.

Depo-Provera was first approved in 1992 as an injectable birth control containing depot medroxyprogesterone acetate, or DMPA. The injection provides long-term contraception through shots administered every three months and has been used by tens of millions of women worldwide.

Long-Term Depo-Provera Side Effects

However, concerns about the long-term side effects of Depo-Provera emerged after studies linked use of the Depo-Provera shot to a 5.5-fold increased risk of developing intracranial meningioma tumors, a condition that requires ongoing monitoring and in severe cases, surgical intervention.

Reports indicate that women diagnosed with meningioma are often unaware that the tumor, or accompanying symptoms, could have been caused by their Depo-Provera use, often leading many to continue receiving the injections for years.

Meningiomas are slow-growing brain tumors that can quietly develop before causing noticeable complications. As they enlarge, they may interfere with surrounding brain tissue and nerves, sometimes requiring surgical intervention or long-term medical monitoring.

These side effects and their implications have led to a growing number of Depo-Provera brain tumor lawsuits now being pursued in courts nationwide, each involving similar claims that the manufacturers failed to adequately warn about the increased risk of intracranial meningioma or the need for ongoing medical monitoring.

According to the complaint, Yesensky first began receiving Depo-Provera injections in 1999 for the purpose of birth control. She continued to receive Depo shots until 2017.

Through her years of use, Yesensky began noticing a feeling of fullness in her left ear and began to suffer significant hearing loss. Following an MRI in 2017, she was diagnosed with a meningioma. However, she indicates she was unaware of the risk of long-term Depo-Provera side effects until the French study was released in 2024.

“Through its affirmative misrepresentations and omissions, Defendants actively concealed from Plaintiff and her physicians the true and significant risks associated with DMPA use.”

– Jennifer Yesensky v. Pfizer Inc. LLC et al

The lawsuit notes that the active ingredient in Depo-Provera, DMPA, is linked to an increased growth of meningiomas. That association strengthens with long-term use.

Untreated or undetected, a meningioma can cause long-term Depo-Provera side effects as it presses against the surrounding brain tissue, resulting in seizures, vision problems, weakness, difficulty speaking, hearing loss and death. Treatment often requires invasive brain surgery.

Even after a successful surgery, the patient must continue to receive medical monitoring in case the tumor returns. In some cases the tumor is too dangerous to remove, leading to other life-long medical needs.

The lawsuit claims that Pfizer and generic manufacturers knew this since at least 1983, long before the injections were even placed on the market, yet they failed to provide proper label warnings.

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

Depo-Provera Lawsuit Bellwether Trials

The complaint will be consolidated with about 2,100 similar Depo-Provera lawsuits centralized in the Northern District of Florida before U.S. District Judge M. Casey Rodgers, who is overseeing coordinated discovery and pretrial proceedings for all federal claims involving the birth control injections.

Judge Rodgers has ordered the parties to prepare five representative “pilot” cases to serve as bellwether lawsuits in early test trials. These trials are intended to help both sides evaluate how juries will digest evidence and expert testimony that is likely to be repeated throughout the litigation.

The first Depo-Provera trial has been scheduled for December 7, 2026, involving a lawsuit filed by Donna Toney of Florida, who claims she suffered vertigo, dizziness and hearing loss due to a brain tumor caused by Depo-Provera injections. Additional trials will follow in early 2027.

If the parties are unable to reach a global Depo-Provera brain tumor settlement after the bellwether process, remaining cases could be sent back to their original federal courts for individual trial dates.

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