By Chris King • Published: 17 Jun 2023 • 20:41
Image of a vet injecting a cat. Credit: Egoreichenkov Evgenii/Shutterstock.com
AEMPS, the Spanish Agency for Medicines and Health Products has ordered the removal from the Spanish market of an injectable veterinary drug used to treat cats.
In a statement, the AEMPS reported that on June 12, it received information regarding an unexpected increase in the notification of adverse events with this product in Poland, Great Britain and Ireland.
Specifically, the veterinary drug in question was Versifel FeLV – an injectable suspension used in the treatment of cats – with the registration number 2636 ESP.
In addition to communicating this information to the AEMPS, the marketing authorisation holder for the aforementioned medicine in all European countries requested the withdrawal from the market of recent batches that had been dispatched.
They reportedly all came from the same bulk of this semi-finished product, including lot 665277, which was released in Spain.
Consequently, the AEMPS informed that, on June 15, 2023, it decreed the pharmacovigilance alert for veterinary drugs VFCV/1/2023, addressed to Zoetis Spain SL, as responsible for marketing the said product.
Likewise, in its alert, the Agency ordered the withdrawal from the market, by Zoetis Spain SL and at its own expense, of all units of lot 665277 of the medicine sold in Spain.
Finally, the AEMPS issued this note in order to inform the autonomous communities of this circumstance instructing them to proceed accordingly, supervising the withdrawal of the drug.
In its position monitoring the public’s well-being in Spain, the Spanish Agency for Medicines and Health Products regularly warns about medical issues.
One of these recently related to Nydrea, a drug used in the treatment of cancer patients. There is said to be a shortage of the product commercialised in Spain by Laboratorios Rubió.
Patients had reported encountering shortages of the drug that is used to treat polycythemia vera (a type of blood cancer) and essential thrombocythemia. It is also prescribed for certain types of chronic myeloid leukaemia and head and neck cancers.
Thank you for taking the time to read this article. Do remember to come back and check The Euro Weekly News website for all your up-to-date local and international news stories and remember, you can also follow us on Facebook and Instagram.
Share this story
Subscribe to our Euro Weekly News alerts to get the latest stories into your inbox!
By signing up, you will create a Euro Weekly News account if you don't already have one. Review our Privacy Policy for more information about our privacy practices.
Originally from Wales, Chris spent years on the Costa del Sol before moving to the Algarve where he is a web reporter for The Euro Weekly News covering international and Spanish national news. Got a news story you want to share? Then get in touch at editorial@euroweeklynews.com
Download our media pack in either English or Spanish.