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Karen Merritt: Raising Awareness of DPD Deficiency and Capecitabine Toxicity
Karen Merritt

Karen Merritt: Raising Awareness of DPD Deficiency and Capecitabine Toxicity

Karen Merritt, Patient Advocate at Advocates for Universal DPD/DPYD Testing, shared a post on LinkedIn:

“Another tragic loss of a beautiful soul – a preventable death- toxicity to capecitabine chemotherapy. Patient and family were not informed of risks of DPD deficiency, nor of DPYD genetic testing. Vistogard was not ordered or administered.

How can capecitabine be prescribed without providers being educated to identify toxicity and educated on how to order Vistogard?

BTG Pharmaceuticals (now SERB Pharmaceuticals) My heart aches for this family and others facing a similarly tragic and preventable death. Capecitabine labeling updated in Dec 2022 to inform patients of risks if DPD deficient and DPYD testing availability.

FDA issued a safety announcement in January 2025 to make sure providers were aware of the risks of capecitabine and 5FU chemo if one is DPD deficient.

1 in 20 individuals are lacking sufficient DPD enzyme to safely process these chemo medications. Advocates for Universal DPD/DPYD Testing This is why we continue to advocate for universal DPYD testing.”

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5-FU Advocates for Universal DPD/DPYD Testing BTG Pharmaceuticals cancer Cancer Drug Safety cancer treatment capecitabine chemotherapy chemotherapy safety chemotherapy toxicity DPD deficiency DPD testing DPYD DPYD testing drug toxicity FDA genetic screening genetic testing Karen Merritt medication safety OncoDaily Oncology Oncology Safety patient safety personalized medicine pharmacogenetic testing pharmacogenomics Precision Oncology SERB Pharmaceuticals Universal DPYD Testing Vistogard