Reported Reactions

Drugs › Iron chelator

Brand name · Deferiprone

Ferriprox: adverse event reports filed with FDA

2,351 reports list it as a suspect or interacting product, 2012–2026. Class: Iron chelator. Also reported as Ferriprox Tablet 500mg.

2,351
reports as suspect product
0% of all reports · about 164 a year
296
reports, 12 months to June 2026
215 in the 12 months before
65%
marked serious by the reporter
85.9% across the class
11.3%
record death among outcomes, as reported
265 reports · not verified by FDA

2,351 adverse event reports received by FDA list the brand name Ferriprox (deferiprone) as a suspect or interacting product, from March 2012 to June 2026. A further 127 reports list it only as a concomitant medication, and those are not counted in the figures on this page.

In the 12 months to June 2026, 296 reports listed it, up 38% from 215 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 164 reports a year and 0% of the 20,646,523 reports in the database, and 9% of the reports for the iron chelator class. How many people take it is not in the data, so a count is not a rate of occurrence.

Reporters most often recorded off label use (38%), death (7.5%) and sickle cell anaemia with crisis (6.8%). A report can list several reactions, so shares add to more than 100%; 282 different terms appear across these reports. Off label use is recorded in 38% of these reports, a larger share than in the median iron chelator drug (2.3%).

65% of the reports are marked serious by the reporter (85.9% across the class); 11.3% record death among the outcomes and 37.6% record hospitalisation, as reported. 61.5% of the reports came from consumers, and the largest patient age group is 18 to 44 (23.9%). 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

089177Jul 2021: 10Aug 2021: 17Sep 2021: 41Oct 2021: 12Nov 2021: 56Dec 2021: 282022Jan 2022: 11Feb 2022: 25Mar 2022: 61Apr 2022: 12May 2022: 20Jun 2022: 44Jul 2022: 10Aug 2022: 18Sep 2022: 51Oct 2022: 157Nov 2022: 22Dec 2022: 382023Jan 2023: 16Feb 2023: 12Mar 2023: 36Apr 2023: 9May 2023: 21Jun 2023: 26Jul 2023: 1Aug 2023: 12Sep 2023: 106Oct 2023: 31Nov 2023: 9Dec 2023: 92024Jan 2024: 10Feb 2024: 6Mar 2024: 7Apr 2024: 15May 2024: 15Jun 2024: 93Jul 2024: 14Aug 2024: 12Sep 2024: 40Oct 2024: 76Nov 2024: 1Dec 2024: 32025Jan 2025: 12Feb 2025: 10Mar 2025: 13Apr 2025: 11May 2025: 15Jun 2025: 8Jul 2025: 11Aug 2025: 10Sep 2025: 177Oct 2025: 12Nov 2025: 13Dec 2025: 72026Jan 2026: 11Feb 2026: 10Mar 2026: 14Apr 2026: 10May 2026: 9Jun 2026: 12

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

02354692012: 620122013: 1032014: 7620142015: 1662016: 7820162017: 732018: 9920182019: 862020: 5220202021: 1982022: 46920222023: 2882024: 29220242025: 2992026: 662026

2026 covers reports received through June 2026 only.

Reactions recorded in the reports

share of Ferriprox reports recording the termmedian drug in iron chelator

  1. Off label useused for a purpose or in a way not on the label38%894
  2. Deaththe patient died; cause not stated by this term7.5%177
  3. Nauseafeeling sick5.1%119
  4. Ill-defined disordera condition that was not clearly described4.9%116
  5. Vomitingbeing sick4.3%102
  6. Fatiguetiredness4.1%96
  7. Neutropenialow neutrophils, a type of white blood cell3.9%91
  8. Pyrexiafever3.7%88
  9. Abdominal discomfortstomach discomfort3.4%80
  10. Haemoglobin decreasedlow haemoglobin2.8%65
  11. Arthralgiajoint pain2.7%63
  12. Diarrhoealoose or frequent stools2.6%62
  13. Covid-19COVID-19 infection2.6%61
  14. White blood cell count decreasedlow white cell count2.6%60
  15. Pneumonialung infection2.1%50
  16. Headachehead pain2%47
  17. Treatment noncompliancethe treatment was not taken as directed2%47
  18. Product dose omission issuea dose was missed2%46
  19. Abdominal pain upperupper stomach pain1.9%45
  20. Astheniaweakness or lack of energy1.9%45
  21. Painpain, site not specified1.9%45
  22. Urinary tract infectionbladder or urinary infection1.8%42
  23. Falla fall1.7%39
  24. Hepatic enzyme increasedraised liver enzymes1.6%38
  25. Abdominal painstomach or belly pain1.4%32

Top 30 of 282 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 5 drugs in the iron chelator 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

Death11.3%265
Life-threatening2%47
Hospitalisation (initial or prolonged)37.6%885
Disability0.9%20
Congenital anomaly0.2%4
Other serious26.7%628
Not serious35%823

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 26,165 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 20.1%2
2 to 117.6%178
12 to 175.2%122
18 to 4423.9%563
45 to 6414.8%347
65 to 747.2%170
75 and over6.1%144
Age not given35.1%825

Patient sex

Female55.9%1,315
Male42.7%1,004
Not given1.4%32

Who reported

Physician8.3%195
Pharmacist17.1%402
Other health professional12.3%288
Lawyer0%0
Consumer or non-health professional61.5%1,447
Not given0.8%19

Age and sex as stated in the report; the reporter's qualification is the primary source recorded by FDA. 87.8% of reports give the United States as the country of the event or reporter.

Reason for use recorded

Indication as recorded (MedDRA)ReportsShare
Haemochromatosis1,30755.6%
Thalassaemia1355.7%
Thalassaemia beta1094.6%
Iron overload843.6%
Sickle cell anaemia602.6%
Sickle cell disease602.6%

The indication field is filled in by the reporter and is often blank; shares are of all 2,351 reports.

Drugs most often listed in the same reports

Drug (any role in the report)ReportsShare of Ferriprox reports
Folic acid63827.1%
Vitamin d31713.5%
Jadenu25710.9%
Hydroxyurea2189.3%
Aspirin1968.3%
Ergocalciferol1968.3%
Gabapentin1586.7%
Eliquis1154.9%
Furosemide1154.9%
Oxycodone1134.8%

Other products listed in reports where Ferriprox 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

MeasureFerriproxIron chelatorAll reports
Reports as suspect product2,35126,16520,646,523
Share of that pool—9%0%
Reports, latest 12 months296—1,332,454
Marked serious65%85.9%57.4%
Death recorded among outcomes, per 1,000 reports11328491
Hospitalisation recorded, per 1,000 reports376369213
Consumer-filed share61.5%32.1%45.8%
Top term, share of reportsOff label use 38%median 2.3%4.1%

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 iron chelator class

DrugName typeReportsLatest 12 monthsMarked serious
Exjadebrand18,3093091.9%
Jadenubrand2,8481661.3%
Deferasiroxgeneric1,81015787.5%
Desferalbrand8471393.2%

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 Ferriprox reports

How many adverse event reports has FDA received for Ferriprox?

2,351 reports list Ferriprox as a suspect or interacting product in the openFDA FAERS release of 28 Sep 2026, covering reports received through June 2026. 296 of them arrived in the latest 12 months. Another 127 list it only as a concomitant medication.

What reactions are recorded in Ferriprox reports?

off label use (38%), death (7.5%), sickle cell anaemia with crisis (6.8%), agranulocytosis (5.4%) and nausea (5.1%). 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 Ferriprox was responsible.

How serious are the reports?

65% are marked serious by the reporter. Among the outcomes recorded, 11.3% of reports include death and 37.6% 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?

consumer or non-health professional (61.5%), pharmacist (17.1%) and other health professional (12.3%). Most reports reach FDA through the manufacturer, which must forward reports it receives.

Are reports for Ferriprox rising?

296 reports in the 12 months to June 2026, up 38% from 215 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 Ferriprox 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 Ferriprox?

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 Ferriprox as a suspect or interacting product; reports listing it only as a concomitant medication (127) 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.