INFERGEN® (Interferon alfacon-1) is indicated for the treatment of chronic HCV infection in patients 18 years of age or older with compensated liver disease who have anti-HCV serum antibodies and/or the presence of HCV RNA. Other causes of hepatitis, such as viral hepatitis B or autoimmune hepatitis, should be ruled out prior to initiation of therapy with INFERGEN. The most commonly reported adverse events during initial and subsequent treatment were headache, fatigue, fever, myalgia, rigors, body pain, arthralgia, and nausea.


Important Safety Information:

INFERGEN is contraindicated in patients with known hypersensitivity to alpha interferons or to any component of the product, in patients with decompensated hepatic disease and autoimmune hepatitis. Development of or exacerbation of autoimmune disorders (e.g. autoimmune thrombocytopenia, idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis) have been reported in patients receiving alpha interferon therapies, including INFERGEN.

Treatment with INFERGEN should be administered under the guidance of a qualified physician, and may lead to moderate-to-severe adverse experiences requiring dose reduction, temporary dose cessation, or discontinuation of further therapy.

Severe psychiatric adverse events may manifest in patients receiving therapy with alpha interferons, including INFERGEN. Depression, suicidal ideation, suicide attempt, and suicide may occur. Other prominent psychiatric adverse events may also occur, including psychosis, aggressive behavior, nervousness, anxiety, emotional lability, abnormal thinking, agitation, apathy and relapse of drug addiction. INFERGEN should be used with extreme caution in patients who report a history of depression. Physicians should monitor all patients for evidence of depression and other psychiatric symptoms. In severe cases, therapy should be stopped immediately and psychiatric intervention instituted.

Bone Marrow Toxicity: Alpha interferons suppress bone marrow function and may result in severe cytopenias including very rare events of aplastic anemia. It is advised that complete blood counts be obtained pretreatment and monitored routinely during therapy. Alpha interferon therapy should be discontinued in patients who develop severe decreases in neutrophil (<0.5 x 109/L) or platelet counts (<50 x 109/L).

Hypertension, tachycardia, palpitation, and tachyarrhythmias have been reported in patients treated with INFERGEN. INFERGEN should be administered with caution to patients with preexisting cardiac disease. Supraventricular arrhythmias, chest pain, and myocardial infarction have been associated with alpha interferon therapies.

Pneumonia and interstitial pneumonitis, some resulting in respiratory failure and/or patient deaths, have been induced or aggravated by alpha interferon therapy, including INFERGEN. Patients who develop persistent or unexplained pulmonary infiltrates or pulmonary function impairment should discontinue treatment with INFERGEN.

Chronic hepatitis C patients with cirrhosis may be at risk of hepatic decompensation when treated with alpha interferons, including INFERGEN. During treatment, patients' clinical status and hepatic function should be closely monitored, and INFERGEN treatment should be immediately discontinued if symptoms of hepatic decompensation, such as jaundice, ascites, coagulopathy, or decreased serum albumin, are observed.

Ophthalmologic Disorders: Decrease or loss of vision, retinopathy including macular edema, retinal artery or vein thrombosis, retinal hemorrhages and cotton wool spots; optic neuritis, and papilledema are induced or aggravated by treatment with INFERGEN or other alpha interferons. All patients should receive an eye examination at baseline. Patients with preexisting ophthalmologic disorders (e.g., diabetic or hypertensive retinopathy) should receive periodic ophthalmologic exams during interferon alpha treatment. INFERGEN therapy should be discontinued in patients who develop new or worsening ophthalmologic disorders.

Ischemic and hemorrhagic cerebrovascular events including hemorrhagic stroke have been observed in patients being treated with INFERGEN. In addition, transient ischemic attack has been reported in young patients being treated with INFERGEN without other reported risk factors.

INFERGEN should be discontinued immediately and appropriate medical treatment instituted if hypersensitivity reactions occur. INFERGEN should be administered with caution to patients with a history of endocrine disorders and should be discontinued immediately in patients who develop signs and symptoms of colitis. In addition, INFERGEN should be suspended in patients with signs and symptoms suggestive of pancreatitis and discontinued in patients diagnosed with pancreatitis.

The most common adverse events reported for INFERGEN during clinical studies were headache (82%), fatigue (69%), fever (61%), myalgia (58%), rigors (57%), body pain (54%), arthralgia (51%), nausea (40%), insomnia (39%), pharyngitis (34%), nervousness (31%), infection upper respiratory (31%), diarrhea (29%), depression (26%), anorexia (24%), injection site erythema (23%), granulocytopenia (23%), dizziness (22%), cough (22%), dyspepsia (21%), thrombocytopenia (19%), anxiety (19%), sinusitis (17%), influenza-like symptoms (15%) and leucopenia (15%).

Please see Important Safety Information (including BOXED WARNING) as well as the full Full Prescribing Information and INFERGEN Medication Guide.

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