Deferiprone
Deferiprone (tradenames include Ferriprox) is an oral drug that chelates iron and is used to treat thalassaemia major.[1]
It is currently licenced for use in the Europe and Asia, but not in Canada and the United States.[1]
Controversy
Deferiprone was at the centre of a protracted struggle between Nancy Olivieri, a Canadian haematologist and researcher, and the Hospital for Sick Children and pharmaceutical giant Apotex, that started in 1996.[2] Dr. Olivieri's data suggested that deferiprone lead to progressive hepatic fibrosis, a finding which is in dispute.[3][4]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Savulescu J (2004). "Thalassaemia major: the murky story of deferiprone". BMJ. 328 (7436): 358–9. PMID 14962851. Full Text.
- ↑ Viens A, Savulescu J (2004). "Introduction to The Olivieri symposium". J Med Ethics. 30 (1): 1–7. PMID 14872065. Free Full Text.
- ↑ Brittenham G, Nathan D, Olivieri N, Porter J, Pippard M, Vichinsky E, Weatherall D (2003). "Deferiprone and hepatic fibrosis". Blood. 101 (12): 5089–90, author reply 5090-1. PMID 12788794. Full Text.
- ↑ Wanless I, Sweeney G, Dhillon A, Guido M, Piga A, Galanello R, Gamberini M, Schwartz E, Cohen A (2002). "Lack of progressive hepatic fibrosis during long-term therapy with deferiprone in subjects with transfusion-dependent beta-thalassemia". Blood. 100 (5): 1566–9. PMID 12176871. Full Text.