Aranesp | Anemia Drug
Aranesp
(darbepoetin alfa), Epogen (epoetin alfa), and Procrit (epoetin alfa) are erythropoiesis-stimulating
agents (or ESAs) widely-prescribed for the treatment of anemia in
cancer patients, chronic kidney failure patients and HIV patients.
All three
drugs are manufactured by Amgen,
Inc., a multi-billion dollar biotechnology corporation based in Thousand
Oaks, California. ESAs were introduced over fifteen years ago and recently
accounted for more than $10 billion in sales in a single year.
Serious safety concerns about ESAs began growing
in 2004 and in November of 2006 the FDA issued an official Alert regarding
the three drugs. The FDA warned that studies have indicated an increased
risk of death, stroke, heart attack and blood clots in patients with chronic
kidney failure, when higher-than-recommended doses of ESAs are taken. Other
studies have shown accelerated tumor growth in head and neck cancer patients – also
noted when higher doses were taken.
Even when taking ESAs at recommended doses, cancer
patients who weren’t
receiving chemotherapy faced an increased risk of death and patients who
were observed after orthopedic surgery were at a higher risk for blood clots.
Due to the highly-prescribed nature of these three
drugs, thousands of patients are at risk of the devastating and potentially-fatal
side effects of ESAs. We’ve worked with many individuals and families
who have been injured by dangerous drugs. If you believe ESA use has put
you or someone you care about in danger, please fill out our Case Review
Contact Form to the right on this page to find out what your case is worth.
