FDA Sanctions New Drug For Prostrate Cancer Treatment
June 18th, 2010 - 7:36 pm ICT by GDBy Meena Kar
Washington, June 18, (THAINDIAN NEWS) The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a new drug for the treatment of prostrate cancer for patients on whom the other drugs are not effective. The drug named ‘Jevtana’ has been approved by the federal body for use in combination with steroid prednisone which is used against cancer. A research revealed that the drug could extended the life of a patient by 10 weeks. The drug which is made by Sanofi-Aventis of France will reportedly be available from this year itself.
Patients who are not at a critical stage are expected to have better chances of survival with the help of the newly approved drug. Richard Pazdur, director of the FDA’s Office of Oncology Drug Products said that the drug setting provides patients with new therapeutic options.
‘Jevtana’ is given in the form of injection and the side effects include lower white blood cell count, anaemia, lower levels of blood platelets, diarrhoea, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, constipation, weakness and kidney failure. The drug is however said to shrink the size of the tumor better than its other standard chemotherapy counterparts. It did not though show signs of completely eliminating cancer in patients. FDA also said that prostrate cancer is the second most common form of cancer among men in America. It usually occurs in older men.
The FDA has approved of two new drugs in prostrate cancer treatment in a short time span. Another drug that was recently approved is Provenge that uses immuno-therapy to fight the disease. Other organizations including the European Union are reviewing and researching the drug for cancer treatment.
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Tags: blood cell count, chemotherapy, critical stage, diarrhoea, food and drug administration, food and drug administration fda, kidney failure, meena, new drugs, older men, oncology drug products, prednisone, prostrate cancer treatment, provenge, sanofi aventis, steroid prednisone, therapeutic options, time span, white blood cell, white blood cell count