Drugs agencies must be more open

Marketing Authorisations

Scopolamine: reference treatment for death rattle

Anticholinergic and atropinic effects

Trastuzumab: may help some patients with breast cancer, but too many unknowns

HER2 and breast cancer

Filgrastim: AIDS-associated neutropenia: another soft indication

Exemestane: no tangible advance in metastatic breast cancer after tamoxifen failure

Mitoxantrone: more risky than beneficial in advanced prostate cancer

Treatment of advanced prostate cancer

Disodium valproate: an alternative for acute mania after lithium failure or intolerance

Lithium to control acute mania

Quinupristin + dalfopristin: severe Gram-positive infections: a last resort for some patients

Desogestrel: the fifth oral progestogen-only contraceptive

Interferon alfa-2 and melanoma: only at low dose

Ethinylestradiol 15 µg + gestodene 60 µg: a lower strength combined contraceptive with no proven advantage

Adverse Effects

Nicotine substitutes and pregnancy

Ischaemic colitis on pseudoephedrine

Extrapyramidal effects of SSRI antidepressants

Stroke and phenylpropanolamine (continued)

Phenobarbital for mild sedation: market withdrawal

Reviews

Calcium channel blockers: third-line antihypertensives

Severe anaphylaxis outside the hospital setting

Diabetes: preventing severe foot lesions