Reported Reactions

Drugs › Anthracycline topoisomerase inhibitor

Brand name · Doxorubicin hydrochloride

Doxil: adverse event reports filed with FDA

4,921 reports list it as a suspect or interacting product, 2004–2026. Class: Anthracycline topoisomerase inhibitor. Also reported as Doxil /00330902/, Doxil /00330904/, Doxil /00055703/.

4,921
reports as suspect product
0% of all reports · about 219 a year
28
reports, 12 months to June 2026
54 in the 12 months before
89.5%
marked serious by the reporter
97% across the class
15.2%
record death among outcomes, as reported
748 reports · not verified by FDA

Between January 2004 and June 2026, 4,921 adverse event reports received by FDA list the brand name Doxil (doxorubicin hydrochloride) as a suspect or interacting product. Reports that mention it only as a concomitant medication (1,955) are left out of every figure here.

In the 12 months to June 2026, 28 reports listed it, down 48% from 54 in the 12 months before. FDA releases FAERS data quarterly, so the newest months are incomplete and grow in later releases. Over its reporting history that is about 219 reports a year and 0% of the 20,646,523 reports in the database, and 4.5% of the reports for the anthracycline topoisomerase inhibitor class. How many people take it is not in the data, so a count is not a rate of occurrence.

Reporters most often recorded febrile neutropenia (7.6%), nausea (6.5%) and off label use (5.6%). A report can list several reactions, so shares add to more than 100%; 849 different terms appear across these reports. Febrile neutropenia is recorded in 7.6% of these reports, a smaller share than in the median anthracycline topoisomerase inhibitor drug (10.4%).

89.5% of the reports are marked serious by the reporter (97% across the class); 15.2% record death among the outcomes and 37.9% record hospitalisation, as reported. 42.3% of the reports came from physicians, and the largest patient age group is 45 to 64 (26%). FDA states that "a causal relationship cannot be established between product and reactions listed in a report" and that for any given report "there is no certainty that a suspected drug caused the event."

Reports by month, five years

02855Jul 2021: 43Aug 2021: 55Sep 2021: 33Oct 2021: 44Nov 2021: 11Dec 2021: 132022Jan 2022: 8Feb 2022: 13Mar 2022: 19Apr 2022: 15May 2022: 3Jun 2022: 4Jul 2022: 4Aug 2022: 1Sep 2022: 5Oct 2022: 1Nov 2022: 1Dec 2022: 32023Jan 2023: 7Feb 2023: 3Mar 2023: 2Apr 2023: 4May 2023: 3Jun 2023: 6Jul 2023: 4Aug 2023: 3Sep 2023: 5Oct 2023: 8Nov 2023: 6Dec 2023: 52024Jan 2024: 4Feb 2024: 5Mar 2024: 7Apr 2024: 1May 2024: 5Jun 2024: 2Jul 2024: 1Aug 2024: 8Sep 2024: 6Oct 2024: 5Nov 2024: 9Dec 2024: 42025Jan 2025: 2Feb 2025: 1Mar 2025: 7Apr 2025: 4May 2025: 4Jun 2025: 3Jul 2025: 2Aug 2025: 3Sep 2025: 3Oct 2025: 5Nov 2025: 3Dec 2025: 02026Jan 2026: 2Feb 2026: 2Mar 2026: 2Apr 2026: 2May 2026: 3Jun 2026: 1

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

06311,2622004: 5420042005: 1972006: 2142007: 12820072008: 1512009: 1752010: 18420102011: 1592012: 572013: 6120132014: 552015: 4062016: 17620162017: 1832018: 1182019: 56720192020: 1,2622021: 5352022: 7720222023: 562024: 572025: 3720252026: 12

2026 covers reports received through June 2026 only.

Reactions recorded in the reports

share of Doxil reports recording the termmedian drug in anthracycline topoisomerase inhibitor

  1. Febrile neutropeniafever with low white blood cells7.6%376
  2. Nauseafeeling sick6.5%320
  3. Off label useused for a purpose or in a way not on the label5.6%275
  4. Vomitingbeing sick5.3%262
  5. Interstitial lung diseasescarring or inflammation of lung tissue5%245
  6. Neutropenialow neutrophils, a type of white blood cell4.8%238
  7. Fatiguetiredness4.6%227
  8. Pyrexiafever4.5%220
  9. Anaemialow red blood cells4.1%203
  10. Dyspnoeashortness of breath3.8%189
  11. Product use in unapproved indicationused for a purpose not on the label3.6%178
  12. Disease progressionthe disease advanced3.4%166
  13. Pneumonialung infection3.2%159
  14. Deaththe patient died; cause not stated by this term3.1%155
  15. Diarrhoealoose or frequent stools2.9%144
  16. Sepsisa severe body-wide response to infection2.9%143
  17. Thrombocytopenialow platelets2.9%142
  18. Astheniaweakness or lack of energy2.9%141
  19. Pancytopenialow counts of all blood cells2.6%127
  20. Back painback pain2.5%125
  21. Infusion related reactiona reaction during or soon after an infusion2.4%117
  22. Rashskin rash2.3%112
  23. Abdominal painstomach or belly pain2.3%111
  24. Pleural effusionfluid around the lung2.3%111
  25. Stomatitissore mouth2.1%105
  26. Drug ineffectivethe medicine did not work as expected2%98
  27. Neuropathy peripheralnerve damage in hands or feet2%96

Top 30 of 849 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 7 drugs in the anthracycline topoisomerase inhibitor 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

Death15.2%748
Life-threatening6.6%323
Hospitalisation (initial or prolonged)37.9%1,864
Disability1.7%85
Congenital anomaly0.1%4
Other serious56.5%2,782
Not serious10.5%515

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 109,832 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

Patient age

Under 20.3%16
2 to 111.3%64
12 to 171.1%56
18 to 449.4%464
45 to 6426%1,281
65 to 7416%788
75 and over8.3%408
Age not given37.5%1,844

Patient sex

Female57.2%2,816
Male28%1,379
Not given14.8%726

Who reported

Physician42.3%2,084
Pharmacist8.6%421
Other health professional30.1%1,480
Lawyer0.6%28
Consumer or non-health professional12.7%623
Not given5.8%285

Age and sex as stated in the report; the reporter's qualification is the primary source recorded by FDA. 50.1% of reports give the United States as the country of the event or reporter.

Reason for use recorded

Indication as recorded (MedDRA)ReportsShare
Ovarian cancer4879.9%
Diffuse large b-cell lymphoma4419%
Multiple myeloma3086.3%
Plasma cell myeloma1943.9%
Breast cancer1923.9%
Ovarian cancer recurrent1152.3%

The indication field is filled in by the reporter and is often blank; shares are of all 4,921 reports.

Drugs most often listed in the same reports

Drug (any role in the report)ReportsShare of Doxil reports
Rituximab93319%
Vincristine89418.2%
Prednisone85317.3%
Cyclophosphamide70914.4%
Vincristine sulfate61312.5%
Dexamethasone60112.2%
Etoposide4198.5%
Velcade4068.3%
Procytox 2000mg/Vial3447%
Carboplatin3346.8%

Other products listed in reports where Doxil 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

MeasureDoxilAnthracycline topoisomerase inhibitorAll reports
Reports as suspect product4,921109,83220,646,523
Share of that pool—4.5%0%
Reports, latest 12 months28—1,332,454
Marked serious89.5%97%57.4%
Death recorded among outcomes, per 1,000 reports15219991
Hospitalisation recorded, per 1,000 reports379362213
Consumer-filed share12.7%5.7%45.8%
Top term, share of reportsFebrile neutropenia 7.6%median 10.4%0.3%

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 anthracycline topoisomerase inhibitor class

DrugName typeReportsLatest 12 monthsMarked serious
Doxorubicingeneric54,4014,87997.9%
Doxorubicin hydrochloridegeneric35,9132,17296.9%
Epirubicin hydrochloridegeneric6,41159499.3%
Daunorubicin hydrochloridegeneric3,43111896.2%
Idarubicin hydrochloridegeneric2,45611298.1%
Vyxeosbrand2,29956187.4%

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.

Questions about Doxil reports

How many adverse event reports has FDA received for Doxil?

4,921 reports list Doxil as a suspect or interacting product in the openFDA FAERS release of 28 Sep 2026, covering reports received through June 2026. 28 of them arrived in the latest 12 months. Another 1,955 list it only as a concomitant medication.

What reactions are recorded in Doxil reports?

febrile neutropenia (7.6%), nausea (6.5%), off label use (5.6%), vomiting (5.3%) and interstitial lung disease (5%). These are MedDRA preferred terms coded from what the reporter described; a report can list several, and a term's presence is not a finding that Doxil was responsible.

How serious are the reports?

89.5% are marked serious by the reporter. Among the outcomes recorded, 15.2% of reports include death and 37.9% include hospitalisation. FDA has not verified these outcomes and states that the reports "cannot be used to estimate the incidence" of the events.

Who files these reports?

physician (42.3%), other health professional (30.1%) and consumer or non-health professional (12.7%). Most reports reach FDA through the manufacturer, which must forward reports it receives.

Are reports for Doxil rising?

28 reports in the 12 months to June 2026, down 48% from 54 in the 12 months before. FDA releases FAERS data quarterly, so the newest months are incomplete and grow in later releases. Counts also move with how many people take a product, its time on the market and publicity.

Do these reports show that Doxil was responsible for these reactions?

No. FDA states that "a causal relationship cannot be established between product and reactions listed in a report" and that for any given report "there is no certainty that a suspected drug caused the event." The reaction may relate to the condition being treated, to other medicines, or to something else.

Is this a list of the side effects of Doxil?

No. It is a count of what was reported to FDA. The adverse reactions observed in clinical studies are printed on the FDA-approved label, which a pharmacist or clinician can go through with you.

How do I report an adverse event?

Consumers and health professionals can report to FDA through MedWatch (Form FDA 3500 online, or 1-800-FDA-1088), or to the manufacturer, which must pass reports on. See the guide on how to report.

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 Doxil as a suspect or interacting product; reports listing it only as a concomitant medication (1,955) 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.

Drug data (FAERS) through 30 Jun 2026; device data (MAUDE) through 31 Aug 2026. Not medical advice.