Thus, we thought we would pass along to everyone a warning the FDA issued yesterday about the possibility that testosterone therapy may cause blood clots.
This is particularly important for myeloma patients who are taking immunomodulatory treatments such as thalidomide, Revlimid, or Pomalyst, since these drugs themselves carry an increased risk of blood clots.
The full text of the FDA warning is as follows:
FDA adding general warning to testosterone products about potential for venous blood clots
[06/19/2014] The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is requiring manufacturers to include a general warning in the drug labeling of all approved testosterone products about the risk of blood clots in the veins. Blood clots in the veins, also known as venous thromboembolism (VTE), include deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE). The risk of venous blood clots is already included in the labeling of testosterone products as a possible consequence of polycythemia, an abnormal increase in the number of red blood cells that sometimes occurs with testosterone treatment. Because there have been postmarket reports of venous blood clots unrelated to polycythemia, FDA is requiring a change to drug labeling of all testosterone products to provide a more general warning regarding venous blood clots and to ensure this risk is described consistently in the labeling of all approved testosterone products.
Because these clots occur in the veins, this new warning is not related to FDA’s ongoing evaluation of the possible risk of stroke, heart attack, and death in patients taking testosterone products. We are currently evaluating the potential risk of these cardiovascular events, which are related to blood clots in the arteries and are described in the Drug Safety Communication posted on January 31, 2014.
Testosterone products are FDA-approved for use in men who lack or have low testosterone levels in conjunction with an associated medical condition. Examples of these conditions include failure of the testicles to produce testosterone for reasons such as genetic problems or chemotherapy.
FDA asks health care professionals and consumers to report any adverse reactions to the FDA’s MedWatch Safety Information and Adverse Event Reporting program:
- Complete and submit the report online at https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/medwatch//*:m/*:m/*:m/*:m/*:m
- Download and complete the form, then submit it via fax to 1-800-FDA-0178
