FDA may limit anemia drug for kidney disease

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The Food and Drug Administration is considering new restrictions on widely used anemia drugs that appear to double the risk of stroke in patients with early-stage kidney disease.

The FDA posted its safety review of the three blood-boosting medications from Amgen Inc. as used by patients with chronic kidney disease who are not yet sick enough to receive dialysis.

The medicines - Procrit, Aranesp and Epogen - are multibillion dollar sellers because of their ability to boost oxygen-carrying red blood cells, reducing the need for painful blood transfusions. But sales have fallen sharply since 2007, when the FDA added the first of several safety warnings to the drugs, based on evidence they can cause tumor growth and hasten death in cancer patients.