An Erythropoietin-Stimulating Agent for Cancer-Related Anemia — No Benefit

All three erythropoiesis-stimulating agents — the two recombinant erythropoietins (Epogen and Procrit) and the closely related protein darbepoetin alfa (Aranesp) — are FDA-approved “...for treatment of anemia in patients with non-myeloid malignancies where anemia is due to the effect of concomitantly administered chemotherapy.” These drugs are not FDA-approved for use in cancer patients who have anemia unrelated to chemotherapy, but they are sometimes prescribed for such patients, who were the focus of this international manufacturer-sponsored trial.

Investigators enrolled 989 patients with active cancer (primarily lung, breast, prostate, colon, and myeloma) who were not currently receiving — and were not scheduled to receive — chemotherapy …