FRIDAY, Dec. 19, 2008 (HealthDay News) -- The Genzyme Corp. drug Mozobil (plerixafor) has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to boost a person's blood stem cell count before a bone marrow transplant, the agency said in a news release.
A bone marrow transplant is often performed in people with certain forms of cancer -- multiple myeloma and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Before getting high doses of chemotherapy or radiation, people with these forms of cancer may be advised to have blood stem cells collected so the cells can be re-infused after the therapy. Mozobil helps increase the number of stem cells before collection.
The most frequent side effects of Mozobil reported during clinical testing included diarrhea, nausea, fatigue, reactions near the injection site, headache, joint pain and dizziness.
More information
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has more about this drug's approval history.
