Darbepoetin alfa: adverse event reports filed with FDA

3,770

reports as suspect product

0% of all reports · about 168 a year

299

reports, 12 months to June 2026

343 in the 12 months before

93.6%

marked serious by the reporter

78.3% across the class

24.5%

record death among outcomes, as reported

923 reports · not verified by FDA

Reports by month, five years

Reports by the month FDA received them. FDA releases FAERS data quarterly, so the newest months are incomplete and grow in later releases.

By year received

2026 covers reports received through June 2026 only.

Reactions recorded in the reports

share of Darbepoetin alfa reports recording the termmedian drug in erythropoiesis-stimulating agent

1. Hospitalisationadmission to hospital15.6%588
2. Off label useused for a purpose or in a way not on the label7.9%297
3. Deaththe patient died; cause not stated by this term6.5%245
4. Pneumonialung infection6.5%244
5. Anaemialow red blood cells5.6%210
6. Arteriovenous fistula site complication5.5%209
7. No adverse eventno adverse event was reported3.6%134
8. Sepsisa severe body-wide response to infection3.6%134
9. Cardiac failureheart failure3.3%126
10. Drug ineffectivethe medicine did not work as expected3.3%123
11. Aplasia pure red cell3.1%115
12. Hypertensionhigh blood pressure3%112
13. Vomitingbeing sick2.8%107
14. Nauseafeeling sick2.8%106
15. Constipationconstipation2.8%105
16. Cardiac failure congestivecongestive heart failure2.5%96
17. Angina pectoris2.5%95
18. Pyrexiafever2.4%92
19. Gastrointestinal haemorrhagebleeding in the stomach or bowel2.4%91
20. Haemoglobin decreasedlow haemoglobin2.3%86
21. End stage renal diseasekidney failure needing dialysis or transplant2.2%83
22. Abdominal painstomach or belly pain2.2%82
23. Diarrhoealoose or frequent stools2.2%82
24. Thrombosis2%77
25. Abdominal distensiona bloated abdomen2%76
26. Pulmonary embolisma blood clot in the lung2%75
27. Renal impairmentreduced kidney function2%74
28. Dyspnoeashortness of breath1.9%73
29. Myelodysplastic syndrome1.9%73
30. Ascitesfluid in the abdomen1.9%72

Top 30 of 671 MedDRA preferred terms recorded across these reports, with a plain-language gloss where one is available. One report can record several terms. The hollow bar is the median share across the 9 drugs in the erythropoiesis-stimulating agent class; it describes the reports, not the patients. FDA states that adverse event reports "represent a small percentage of total usage numbers of a product", that "common products may have a higher number of adverse events due to the higher total number of people using the product", and that the data "by themselves are not an indicator of the safety profile of the drug or biologic."

Outcomes recorded

Outcome flags as the reporter set them; a report can carry several, and "other serious" is FDA's own category for serious reports outside the named outcomes. Grey bar: all 66,386 reports in the class. FDA has not verified any outcome and states that the reports "cannot be used to estimate the incidence of these events."

Patients and reporters

Age and sex as stated in the report; the reporter's qualification is the primary source recorded by FDA. 9.2% of reports give the United States as the country of the event or reporter.

Reason for use recorded

The indication field is filled in by the reporter and is often blank; shares are of all 3,770 reports.

Drugs most often listed in the same reports

Other products listed in reports where Darbepoetin alfa is a suspect product, whatever their own role. Co-listing means the two were recorded together; it says nothing about either product's part in the event. Only the 2,500 most-reported names are counted here.

In context

Shares are of reports, not of patients treated. The number of people taking a product is not in the data, so none of these figures is a rate, and differences between columns reflect who takes a product, who reports and how long it has been sold. FDA states that adverse event reports "represent a small percentage of total usage numbers of a product", that "common products may have a higher number of adverse events due to the higher total number of people using the product", and that the data "by themselves are not an indicator of the safety profile of the drug or biologic."

Other drugs in the erythropoiesis-stimulating agent class

Ordered by report count for navigation only. FDA states that adverse event reports "represent a small percentage of total usage numbers of a product", that "common products may have a higher number of adverse events due to the higher total number of people using the product", and that the data "by themselves are not an indicator of the safety profile of the drug or biologic." A brand and its generic are separate rows because reporters name them separately.

Where this comes from. Counts are built from the openFDA Drug Adverse Event (FAERS) bulk export released 28 Sep 2026, which holds reports FDA received through 30 Jun 2026. Drug names are as reported, resolved to the brand or generic name on the FDA label where openFDA's harmonisation matched them; classes are the pharmacologic class (EPC) from the label and the National Drug Code Directory of 17 Sep 2026. A report counts here when it lists Darbepoetin alfa as a suspect or interacting product; reports listing it only as a concomitant medication (2,968) are excluded. No report narrative, lot number, patient detail or reporter identity is published. See the methodology and sources; FDA's record is authoritative, and corrections are handled within five working days.