Amgen ‘committed’ to distributing latest ESA data

Amgen has announced that it is dedicated to keeping patients and doctors up to date with the latest available information about erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESAs).

The restatement of this commitment comes as the firm announces approved updated safety information including a new boxed warning on the label for the compounds, including Aranesp (darbepoetin alfa) and Epogen (epoetin alfa), in the US.

According to the new label warning, clinical studies have shown the drugs shortening overall survival and time-to-tumour progression in patients with head and neck, non-small cell lung, breast, cervical and lymphoid cancers dosed to target a haemoglobin of at least 12 g/dL.

Sean Harper, chief medical officer of Amgen, said: “Amgen is committed to ensuring physicians and patients have the latest information about ESAs in order to make appropriate treatment decisions.”

He added that the firm had used a number of methods over the past year to spread this information, including posting label updates online, focusing its marketing activity on safety and hosting briefings with the oncology community.

Earlier this year, Amgen announced that ESA revenue appeared to be stable, though noted that continued dialogue regarding the drugs may results in further changes during 2008.