Selected items from the News and Latest Additions sections of www.palliativedrugs.com, the world’s leading palliative care website with over 30,000 members from 169 Countries.

Hot topics

Cochrane review: Palliative interventions for controlling vaginal bleeding in advanced cervical cancer
This new Cochrane review (CD011000) has been published in full on-line.

Drug updates

Co-danthramer and strong co-danthramer capsules discontinued
Napp has discontinued co-danthramer 25mg/200mg (dantron/poloxamer 188) and strong co-danthramer 37.5mg/500mg (dantron/poloxamer 188) capsules. Stocks are expected to last until the end of June 2015 and December 2015 respectively. There are no other manufacturers of co-danthramer capsules. The suspension formulations of co-danthramer are still available.

Ketamine supply update
Pfizer have confirmed that currently all strengths of ketamine injection, i.e. including the 50mg/mL (10mL) vials that have more recently been available, are out of stock, and they are unable to give a date of availability.

Latest additions

PCF updated monographs summary (June 2015)
The online Palliative Care Formulary is being continually updated. The following monographs have been updated during June 2015 and supersede those in the publication of the 5th edition of the Palliative Care formulary (PCF5) and PCF5 epdf. They can be accessed from the formulary section of the website.

Chapter 05: Fentanyl (transmucosal)
Chapter 13: Ketamine

For a full list of all the monographs updated since the publication of PCF5, click here. Follow us on twitter @palliativedrugs for the latest updates.

Prepared by Sarah Charlesworth and Andrew Wilcock