Immunomodulatory drugs and pregnancy prevention: temporary advice for management during coronavirus (COVID-19)
Guidance has been published about thalidomide, lenalidomide, and pomalidomide and the use of remote consultations and home pregnancy testing for patients taking them during COVID-19.
Temporary guidance
Thalidomide (Thalidomide Celgene), lenalidomide (Revlimid) and pomalidomide (Imnovid) are teratogenic immunomodulatory drugs with a pregnancy prevention programme.
To enable the shielding of patients who are receiving these medicines during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the manufacturer (Celgene) has issued a letter to healthcare professionals informing them of temporary modifications to the pregnancy prevention programmes to facilitate remote consultations, where clinically appropriate.
See MHRA guidance (published 21 May 2020) gov.uk/guidance/immunomodulatory-drugs-temporary-pregnancy-prevention-guidance-during-coronavirus-covid-19
Call for reporting
Healthcare professionals, patients, and caregivers are asked to submit all suspected side effect reports using the Yellow Card scheme electronically using:
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the Yellow Card app; download now from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store
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through some clinical IT systems (EMIS/SystmOne/Vision/MiDatabank)
Article citation: Drug Safety Update volume 13, issue 10: May 2020: 3.