Pfizer’s resolution Wednesday to drag its sickle cell tablet off the market due to security issues shocked advocates and medical doctors, leaving many looking for solutions and scrambling for methods to inform their sufferers a couple of drug that has lengthy divided the group.
The transfer underscored the severity of the dangers lately seen in research of the drug, Oxbryta, during which researchers have reported quite a few deaths amongst sufferers who have been receiving it. European regulators on Thursday additionally mentioned that sufferers within the trials had larger charges of the ache crises which are hallmarks of sickle cell illness as soon as they began on Oxbryta, additionally referred to as voxelotor, than they did earlier than taking the drug.
Investigations are ongoing, however the findings elevate critical affected person security issues. They’ve additionally prompted questions in regards to the company choices by International Blood Therapeutics, which initially developed the drug, and Pfizer, in addition to in regards to the regulatory processes that led to its approval.
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