Many new drugs initially enjoy banner sales growth, only to get kneecapped by reports of previously unknown adverse side effects. On Friday, the FDA issued an alert “highlighting” a stricter warning label for one of Pfizer‘s most important new drugs.
The compound in question, Chantix, is one of the most recent non-nicotine stop-smoking treatments on the market. The FDA approved it back in 2006, but after its launch, some of the more than 5 million patients who have tried the drug began to report adverse events, including anxiety, other serious psychiatric changes, and “vivid” and “unusual” dreams. As a result of these reports, Pfizer strengthened the warning label for Chantix. Last week’s FDA announcement formalized more specific safety warnings for the drug’s label.