FDA Drug Information Updates

The FDA has made strides in improving transparency and data access, and has implemented tools to allow the pharmaceutical industry and the public to transform raw data into usable information. One of these tools is called the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) Public Dashboard. In this episode, the architects of the FAERS Public Dashboard – Deputy Director of the Regulatory Science Staff Suranjan De, and Acting Team Lead in Regulatory Science Information Sanjay Sahoo—both of CDER’s Office of Surveillance and Epidemiology, highlight their work with this new online tool.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning that the medicine lamotrigine (Lamictal) for seizures and bipolar disorder can cause a rare but very serious reaction that excessively activates the body’s infection-fighting immune system. This can cause severe inflammation throughout the body and lead to hospitalization and death, especially if the reaction is not diagnosed and treated quickly. A link to the full communication detailing specific information for health care professionals and a list of FDA-approved GBCAs can be found at www.fda.gov/Drugs/DrugSafety Released 4/25/2018

Oncologists Dr. Sanjeeve Bala and Dr. Abhilasha Nair from FDA’s Oncology Center of Excellence discuss the recent approval of bevacizumab-awwb, a biosimilar to US-licensed Avastin, marketed as MVASI. MVASI is the first biosimilar approved in the US for the treatment of cancer. Released on December 21, 2017

The FDA announced that it is requiring a new class warning and other safety measures for all gadolinium-based contrast agents (GBCAs) for magnetic resonance imaging (or MRI) concerning gadolinium remaining in patients’ bodies, including the brain, for months to years after receiving these drugs. Report side effects involving GBCAs to FDA’s MedWatch program at www.fda.gov/medwatch. A link to the full communication detailing specific information for health care professionals and a list of FDA approved GBCAs can be found at www.fda.gov/DrugSafety. Released 12/19/2017

The FDA announced that a review of four large clinical safety trials shows that treating asthma with long-acting beta agonists (LABAs) in combination with inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) does not result in significantly more serious asthma-related side effects than treatment with ICS alone. A link to the full communication detailing information for health care professionals and the Data Summary can be found at www.fda.gov/DrugSafetyCommunications. Released 12/20/2017

Guest: Leonard H. Calabrese, DO Guest: John R. Tesser, MD This activity provides patient and practice-specific biosimilars content for clinicians in rheumatology practice.

Many listeners may be familiar with the FDA's Adverse Event Reporting System or FAERS. Data in FAERS supports the FDA's post-marketing safety surveillance program for drug products and therapeutic biologic products. Recently, CDER's Office of Surveillance and Epidemiology created and released a tool that makes FAERS data easier to query and retrieve. This new interactive dashboard is designed to expand access of FAERS data to the general public. Dr. Janet Woodcock, Director of the FDA Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, discusses the advantages of the tool as well as its limitations.

FDA medical oncologists discuss the July 7, 2017, approval of l-glutamine to reduce the acute complications of sickle cell disease. Released August 17, 2017

FDA medical oncologists discuss the approval of osimertinib for EGFR mutation-positive non-small cell lung cancer. Released July 28, 2017

FDA medical oncologists discuss the FDA approvals of brigatinib and ceritinib for ALK-positive non-small cell lung cancer. Released July 25, 2017

The D.I.S.C.O. hosts discuss the agency’s first approval of pembrolizumab, a cancer treatment based on a common biomarker rather than the location in the body where the tumor originated. Released May 30, 2017.

FDA medical oncologists discuss the agency’s March 23, 2017 approval of avelumab for the treatment of patients 12 years and older with metastatic Merkel cell carcinoma. Released May 22, 2017

FDA medical oncologists discuss the agency’s March 2017 approval of niraparib for the maintenance treatment of patients with recurrent epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube, or primary peritoneal cancer who are in complete or partial response to platinum-based chemotherapy. Released May 18, 2017

FDA medical oncologists discuss the agency’s accelerated approval of rucaparib for treatment of patients with deleterious BRCA mutation-associated advanced ovarian cancer who have been treated with two or more chemotherapies. Released May 17, 2017

In the FDA's inaugural Drug Information Soundcast in Clinical Oncology (D.I.S.C.O.) episode, Dr. Richard Pazdur, director of the FDA Oncology Center of Excellence, talks with hosts Dr. Sanjeeve Bala and Dr. Abhilasha Nair about this new podcast series.

Based on new data from two large clinical trials, the FDA concluded that the type 2 diabetes medicine canagliflozin (brand names Invokana, Invokamet, Invokamet XR) causes an increased risk of leg and foot amputations. The FDA is requiring new warnings, including their most prominent Boxed Warning, be added to the canagliflozin drug labels to describe this risk. Amputations of the toe and middle of the foot were the most common; however, amputations involving the leg, below and above the knee, also occurred. Some patients had more than one amputation, some involving both limbs. Report side effects involving canagliflozin and other medicines to the FDA MedWatch program at fda.gov/medwatch. A link to the full communication detailing specific information for health care professionals and the complete Data Summary can be found at fda.gov/DrugSafetyCommunications. If you have drug questions, contact the FDA at druginfo@fda.hhs.gov. Released 5/16/2017

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is restricting the use of codeine and tramadol medicines in children. Codeine is approved to treat pain and cough, and tramadol is approved to treat pain. These medicines carry serious risks, including slowed or difficult breathing and death, which appear to be a greater risk in children younger than 12 years, and should not be used in these children. These medicines should also be limited in some older children. Single-ingredient codeine and all tramadol-containing products are FDA-approved only for use in adults. The FDA is also recommending against the use of codeine and tramadol medicines in breastfeeding mothers due to possible harm to their infants. As a result, the FDA is requiring several changes to the labels of all prescription medicines containing these drugs. These new actions further limit the use of these medicines beyond the 2013 restriction of codeine use in children younger than 18 years to treat pain after surgery to remove the tonsils and/or adenoids. The FDA is now adding: FDA’s strongest warning, called a Contraindication, to the drug labels of codeine and tramadol alerting that codeine should not be used to treat pain or cough and tramadol should not be …

FDA is recommending new safety measures to improve the safe use of long acting beta agonists (LABAs).

The FDA has issued a public health advisory regarding serious medication errors that have arisen when consumers used Maalox Total Relief, the upset stomach reliever and anti-diarrheal medication,by mistake, when they had intended to use one of the traditional Maalox liquid antacid products.

On July 28th, 2009, the FDA issued an advisory recommending that consumers do not use body building products marketed as containing steroids or steroid-like substances, due to potential serious health risks. Listen now for the full advisory.