WASHINGTON (AP) — The Food and Drug Administration is adding stronger warnings to a group of best-selling arthritis drugs because they can increase the risk of cancer in children and adolescents.
The agency will bolster the "black box" warning on five drugs, including medications from Abbott Laboratories, Johnson & Johnson, and a drug co-marketed by Amgen Inc. and Wyeth. The agency said last year it was reviewing several dozen reports of children who developed cancer while taking the medications.
Known as tumor necrosis factor blockers, the drugs work by neutralizing a protein that causes inflammation and damage to bones, cartilage and other tissue. The drugs are prescribed to children with rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disorder and Crohn's disease.
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