Tisotumab vedotin-tftv (Tivdak – Seagen/Genmab), a tissue factor-directed antibody and microtubule inhibitor conjugate, has received full approval from the FDA for treatment of recurrent or metastatic cervical cancer that progressed on or after chemotherapy. It is the first antibody-drug conjugate to be approved for treatment of cervical cancer. The drug received accelerated approval from the FDA in 2021 for the same indication.

Revumenib (Revuforj – Syndax), an oral menin inhibitor, has been approved by the FDA for treatment of relapsed or refractory acute leukemia in patients ≥1 year old with a lysine methyltransferase 2A gene (KMT2A) translocation. It is the first menin inhibitor to be approved in the US.

The FDA has approved Azmiro (Azurity), the first injectable formulation of testosterone cypionate to become available in single-dose vials and prefilled syringes for treatment of males with conditions associated with a deficiency or absence of endogenous testosterone. Injectable testosterone cypionate has been available in multidose vials (Depo-Testosterone, and generics) for many years. Testosterone enanthate (Xyosted) is available in prefilled autoinjectors for use in adult men. No testosterone products are approved for treatment of low testosterone levels due solely to aging. All...

Mirdametinib (Gomekli – SpringWorks Therapeutics), an oral kinase inhibitor, has been approved by the FDA for treatment of neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) in patients ≥2 years old who have symptomatic plexiform neurofibromas not amenable to complete resection. Mirdametinib is the second drug to be approved for this indication in the US and the first to be approved for use in adults. The oral kinase inhibitor selumetinib (Koselugo) was approved in 2020 for use in patients 2-17 years old.

The FDA has approved the interleukin (IL)-23 antagonist risankizumab-rzaa (Skyrizi – Abbvie) for treatment of moderate to severe plaque psoriasis in adults. Risankizumab is the third IL-23 antagonist to be approved for this indication; guselkumab (Tremfya) and tildrakizumab (Ilumya) were approved earlier.

Most patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) present with the relapsing-remitting form of the disease. Pharmacologic treatment usually includes a disease-modifying drug, corticosteroids for acute exacerbations, and other drugs for managing symptoms such as fatigue, depression, and pain. Early use of disease-modifying therapy has improved clinical outcomes.

Intensive chemotherapy, with or without total body radiation, followed by bone marrow transplantation is now widely used in the treatment of malignant diseases. The drugs and radiation needed to try to eradicate the malignancy unavoidably destroy the bone marrow; intravenous infusion of bone marrow cells restores the marrow by repopulating it. Diseases for which bone marrow transplantation has been used include the leukemias and lymphomas, breast cancer, neuroblastoma, ovarian cancer, germ cell tumors, melanoma, multiple myeloma, and malignant gliomas (NC Gorin, Am J Clin On-col, 14...

Minoxidil 2% topical solution (Rogaine - Upjohn) has been available in the USA since 1988 for treatment of androgenetic alopecia (Medical Letter, 29:87, 1987). Although available only by prescription, it is advertised on television to the general public.

Risedronate (Actonel - Procter & Gamble), a pyridinyl bisphosphonate, has been approved by the FDA for oral treatment of Paget's disease of bone. Characterized by excessive bone resorption, bony deformity, disorganized bone remodeling and structural weakness, Paget's disease occurs in up to 3% of people older than 55 in Europe and North America (PD Delmas and PJ Meunier, N Engl J Med, 336:558, 1997).

High doses of estrogens, with or without a progestin, have been used for many years to prevent pregnancy after unprotected coitus (Medical Letter, 31:93, 1989). Now the FDA has approved marketing of the Preven Emergency Contraceptive Kit (Gynetics, Inc.) for this indication. The kit, which will require a prescription, includes four tablets, each containing 50 g of ethinyl estradiol and 0.25 mg of levonorgestrel, and a pregnancy test to rule out a pre-existing pregnancy, which would be a contraindication to taking the hormones.