LONDON (Alliance News) - The US Food and Drug Administration approved Nucala or mepolizumab for use with other asthma medicines for the maintenance treatment of asthma in patients age 12 years and older. Nucala is approved for patients who have a history of severe asthma attacks (exacerbations) despite receiving their current asthma medicines. Nucala is made by GlaxoSmithKline PLC in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina.
Asthma is a chronic disease that causes inflammation in the airways of the lungs. During an asthma attack, airways become narrow making it hard to breathe. Severe asthma attacks can lead to asthma-related hospitalizations because these attacks can be serious and even life-threatening.
Nucala is administered once every four weeks by subcutaneous injection by a health care professional into the upper arm, thigh, or abdomen. Nucala is a humanized interleukin-5 antagonist monoclonal antibody produced by recombinant DNA technology in Chinese hamster ovary cells. Nucala reduces severe asthma attacks by reducing the levels of blood eosinophils- a type of white blood cell that contributes to the development of asthma.
The most common side effects of Nucala include headache, injection site reactions (pain, redness, swelling, itching, or a burning feeling at the injection site), back pain, and weakness (fatigue). Hypersensitivity reactions can occur within hours or days of being treated with Nucala, including swelling of the face, mouth, and tongue; fainting, dizziness, or lightheadedness; hives; breathing problems and rash. Herpes zoster infections have occurred in patients receiving Nucala. Herpes zoster is the virus that causes shingles.
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