Intravenous route as the only appropriate route for administration of Velcade®(bortezomib)

Johnson and Johnson would like to remind healthcare professionals that the correct procedure for administering Velcade® (bortezomib) 3.5 mg powder for solution for injection is via the intravenous route. Since the first approval of Velcade® in the United States on 13 May 2003, three cases of inadvertent intrathecal administration with fatal outcome have been reported worldwide. Each case can be considered accidental and occurred when an intrathecal oncology chemotherapy was scheduled at the same time as the Velcade® intravenous administration. Some measures have been recommended to reduce the risk of incorrect administration, such as the use of different connectors and clearly labelled syringes for intravenously and intrathecally-administered medicinal products.

 
 
Healthcare professional, Therapeutic Products
Published:

Dear Healthcare Professional Letters

12 Dec 2019

Only abstracts of the Dear Healthcare Professional Letters (DHCPL) are provided on this website. Details of the letters can be found on the MOH Alert System, which is accessible via the Health Professionals Portal (HPP). HPP is a one-stop portal for all healthcare professionals in Singapore. Dentists, medical doctors and pharmacists may access HPP at https://www.moh.gov.sg/hpp/, and follow the procedures below to access the MOH Alert system.

Step 1: On the top navigation ribbon of webpage, select 'For Healthcare Professionals' followed by 'Health Professionals Portal' and click on the choice of profession. User will be redirected to the specific HPP webpage for the selected profession.

Step 2: Click on the Restricted Content icon on the left panel of webpage and login via SingPass.

Step 3: Click on the MOH Alert icon under ‘Applications’ section

Step 4: Click on the Drug Alert tab to view the DHCPLs.