Raptiva, for psoriasis, pulled from US
April 9, 2009 by Marijke Durning, RN
Filed under Diseases & Conditions
If you’ve been taking Raptiva for treatment of psoriasis and you’re in the United States, you may not yet know that the drug has been pulled from the American market.
According to a press release issued yesterday by the US FDA:
Today, Genentech, the manufacturer of the psoriasis drug Raptiva (efalizumab), announced that it has begun a voluntary, phased withdrawal of the product from the U.S. market. The company is taking this action because of a potential risk to patients of developing progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML), a rare, serious, progressive neurologic disease caused by a virus that affects the central nervous system. By June 8, 2009, Raptiva will no longer be available in the United States.
Raptiva was a once weekly injection given to adults with moderate to severe psoriasis.
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Image: Newscom.com
