Thalidomide: From 3 Different Sources
A drug that was withdrawn in the in 1961 after it was found to cause limb deformities in many babies born to women given the drug during pregnancy.
Thalidomide is still used to treat certain forms of Hansen’s disease (leprosy) and Behçet’s syndrome.
A sedative and hypnotic drug long withdrawn from the market because it causes TERATOGENESIS. If taken during the ?rst trimester of pregnancy it may cause an unusual limb deformity in the fetus known as phocomelia (‘seal’ or ‘?ipper’ extremities).
n. a drug that was formerly used as a sedative. If taken during the first three months of pregnancy, it was found to cause fetal abnormalities involving limb malformation and was withdrawn as a sedative in 1962. Recently, however, thalidomide has been found to be effective in treating myeloma and severe reactions in leprosy. It appears to act in various ways, including as an immunomodulator, anti-inflammatory agent, and angiogenesis inhibitor. Side-effects include constipation, drowsiness, and (with long-term use) peripheral neuropathy. It should not be used in women who are pregnant or capable of becoming pregnant.
This is a great reduction in the size of the proximal parts of the limbs. In extreme cases the hands and feet may spring directly from the trunk. A rare condition, it occurred most commonly in children whose mothers took THALIDOMIDE in early pregnancy.... phocomelia
A physical, chemical, or biological agent, such as radiation, the drug thalidomide, and the rubella virus, that causes abnormalities in a developing embryo or fetus.... teratogen
An independent advisory committee – launched in 1971 in the United Kingdom – composed of doctors, pharmacists and other specialists. It advises the MEDICINES CONTROL AGENCY in the UK on the safety, e?cacy and pharmaceutical quality of MEDICINES for which licences are sought and also reviews reports of ADVERSE REACTIONS TO DRUGS, including spontaneous ‘Yellow Card’ reports from doctors or pharmacists who suspect that a patient has suffered an adverse reaction from a medicine. Its predecessor, the Committee for Safety of Drugs, was set up in 1963 in response to the THALIDOMIDE disaster.... committee on safety of medicines (csm)
This consists of defects in the distal part of the extremities: for example, the absence of a forearm or hand. Hemimelia is a congenital defect; large numbers of cases resulted from the administration of THALIDOMIDE during pregnancy (see also PHOCOMELIA; TERATOGENESIS).... hemimelia
The Committee for safety of medicines was set up in 1963 after the thalidomide disaster. It is an advisory committee which examines drugs before clinical trials, before a product licence is granted, and when passed for marketing. A product cannot be tested in the human body without the company holding a clinical trial certificate. A product licence is renewable after five years. ... committee on safety of medicines
n. congenital total absence of the arms or legs due to a developmental defect. It is one of the fetal abnormalities induced by the drug *thalidomide taken early in pregnancy. See also phocomelia.... amelia
an agent that prevents the development of new blood vessels (*angiogenesis) by inhibiting the action of *vascular endothelial growth factor (it is also known as anti-VEGF). Angiogenesis inhibitors are used as anticancer drugs, since growing cancers have a greater need for blood supply than normal tissue and must develop new blood vessels before progressing beyond a very small size. They include *aflibercept, *bevacizumab, and *thalidomide. Because of their action, some of these drugs are used in the treatment of wet age-related *macular degeneration.... angiogenesis inhibitor
n. a drug, related to *thalidomide, that affects the immune response and has activity against tumour cell formation and *angiogenesis. It is used to treat multiple myeloma and certain types of *myelodysplastic syndromes. The most serious side-effects are deep vein thrombosis and neutropenia, and there is a risk of *teratogenesis (women capable of bearing children must practise contraception during treatment and for a month before and after it).... lenalidomide
n. a malignant tumour of plasma cells, often known as a ‘solitary myeloma’. Although usually occurring as a single tumour in bone marrow or more rarely soft tissue (extramedullary plasmacytoma), it may be multiple, in which case it is classified as a multiple myeloma. All of these tumours may produce the abnormal gammaglobulins that are characteristic of myeloma, and they may progress to widespread myeloma. The soft-tissue tumours often respond to radiotherapy and to such drugs as thalidomide and cyclophosphamide; the bone tumours are typically less responsive.... plasmacytoma
(multiple myeloma, myelomatosis) n. a malignant disease of the bone marrow, characterized by two or more of the following criteria: (1) the presence of an excess of abnormal malignant plasma cells in the bone marrow; (2) typical *lytic deposits in the bones on X-ray, giving the appearance of holes; (3) the presence in the serum of an abnormal gammaglobulin, usually IgG (an immunoglobulin; see paraprotein). *Bence-Jones protein may also be found in the serum or urine. The patient may complain of tiredness due to anaemia and of bone pain and may develop pathological fractures. Treatment is usually with such drugs as steroids, melphalan, cyclophosphamide, or thalidomide with local radiotherapy to particular areas of pain. See also plasmacytoma.... myeloma
n. a derivative of *thalidomide with similar properties. It is taken in the treatment of relapsed or refractory myeloma. The main side-effects include lethargy, low blood counts, and thromboembolism; this drug should not be used in women who are pregnant or capable of becoming pregnant.... pomalidomide
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