About 25% of US women from the ages of 15 to 49 take some sort of contraceptive to prevent unwanted pregnancy. For many years, I was among them. But the truth is, I never felt really all that safe being on them. As a woman with polycystic ovarian syndrome, the influx of hormones did more harm for me than good, so after years I finally went off of them. But I didn’t stop birth control before it likely led to my gallbladder being removed due to taking Yaz after I was misdiagnosed with premenstrual dysphoric disorder, or PMDD.
The sad thing is, I am one of the lucky ones. The surgery to remove my gallbladder was a pretty mild one — they were able to do it laparoscopically and recovery wasn’t bad. But women like Elizabeth Fleurisma can’t claim to be so lucky.
In an exclusive interview with the New York Post, Fleurisma shared that at the age of 30, she learned that she had a lime-size tumor in her brain. After a 16-hour surgery and weeks of radiation, a piece of the tumor remained stuck in her skull and royally disrupted her daily life.
“Sometimes when I’m trying to speak, I’ll forget a word,” she told the Post. “It’s not easy healing from these things or getting back to where you left off.”
Fleurisma is one of 75 New Yorkers and one of a 1,000-plus people who believes that her birth control is to blame. Depo-Provera, a progestin shot made by Pfizer that’s given every month, is under fire for allegedly failing to warn patients about known risks, the Post reported.
Other people are sharing their harrowing stories as well, according to NBC News. Louisiana resident Robin Phillip also had a brain tumor that caused her to need emergency surgery. Ultimately, she lost everything and ended up having to live with her parents again.
Still, Pfizer told the Post that it “believes these claims are without merit and will vigorously defend against these allegations.”
The statement continued, “The Company stands behind the safety and efficacy of Depo-Provera, which has been used by millions of women worldwide and remains an important treatment option for women seeking to manage their reproductive health.”
Fleurisma’s suit claims that the prolonged impact of “ingredients” found in Depo-Provera significantly increases the risk of intracranial meningiomas that she, Phillip, and so many other women have endured.
“The relationship between sex hormones and meningioma tumors has been known since the 1920s, and the presence of progesterone receptors in meningioma tissue has been reported since the 1970s,” Fleurisma’s suit claims. “Several scientific studies have established that progesterone, its synthetic analog progestin and Depo-Provera, in particular, cause and/or substantially contribute to the development and growth of intracranial meningioma tumors.”
The drug indicates other risks such as breast cancer, blood clots, stroke, and ectopic pregnancy as possible side effects, but Pfizer does not mention the risk of tumors.
Both women and over 1,000 others suffered from debilitating conditions that affected their lives, and many like Fluerisma and Phillip have had to undergo life-altering, invasive surgeries.
But for them, the suit isn’t just about getting money “for their troubles.” It’s about advocating for women in the health care space where both research and care ignores their needs.
“Some women … don’t ask questions, and that’s what I didn’t do,” Fleurisma told the Post. “You have a voice, you speak on your health and you take care of your health.”
