{"entity":{"id":"oprelvekin","kind":"drug","name":"Oprelvekin","aka":["Recombinant interleukin-11","rhIL-11"],"tldr":"Oprelvekin was the first drug approved, in 1997, to prevent the severe platelet falls that chemotherapy causes, but fluid retention and heart rhythm problems limited it and it was withdrawn in 2011; thrombopoietin agonists took over the problem.","summary":"Oprelvekin, recombinant human interleukin-11 made by Genetics Institute and later Wyeth, was approved by the FDA in November 1997 to prevent severe thrombocytopenia and reduce the need for platelet transfusions after myelosuppressive chemotherapy in adults with non-myeloid malignancies, after a randomised trial in which fewer treated patients needed transfusions. Fluid retention, dilutional anaemia, atrial arrhythmias and, rarely, anaphylaxis limited its use, and Pfizer withdrew it from the market in 2011 for commercial reasons. Romiplostim and eltrombopag now cover the thrombopoietic role, though neither is approved for chemotherapy-induced thrombocytopenia.","status":"withdrawn","asOf":"2026-09-08","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oprelvekin","links":[{"label":"Wikipedia","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oprelvekin"},{"label":"ChEMBL CHEMBL1201564","url":"https://www.ebi.ac.uk/chembl/explore/compound/CHEMBL1201564"}],"tags":["gap-fill","chembl-universe"],"related":[],"cancers":[],"sections":[],"technologies":["cytokine-therapy"],"targets":["il11ra"],"drugs":["romiplostim","eltrombopag"],"companies":[],"institutions":[],"pathways":[],"terms":[],"trials":[],"people":[],"bottlenecks":[],"keyPapers":[],"journals":[],"notes":[],"brand":"Neumega","modality":"Recombinant interleukin-11, subcutaneous injection","mechanism":"Activates the IL-11 receptor on megakaryocyte progenitors to increase platelet production after chemotherapy.","approvals":[{"region":"US","year":1997,"indication":"Prevention of severe thrombocytopenia and reduction of platelet transfusions after myelosuppressive chemotherapy in non-myeloid malignancies","note":"Withdrawn in 2011"}],"mechanismSteps":[],"toxicity":[],"access":[],"regulatoryEvents":[]},"route":"/drugs/oprelvekin/","neighbours":{"technology":[{"id":"cytokine-therapy","kind":"technology","name":"Cytokines & engineered cytokines","route":"/technologies/cytokine-therapy/"}],"target":[{"id":"il11ra","kind":"target","name":"IL-11 receptor alpha","route":"/targets/il11ra/"}],"drug":[{"id":"eltrombopag","kind":"drug","name":"Eltrombopag","route":"/drugs/eltrombopag/"},{"id":"romiplostim","kind":"drug","name":"Romiplostim","route":"/drugs/romiplostim/"}]}}