What the label lists and what reports show
Deferoxamine side effects
Deferoxamine's FDA label: “Most common adverse reactions are injection reactions (local and systemic), hypersensitivity reactions, infections with Yersinia and Mucormycosis, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, hematologic, hepatic, musculoskeletal, urogenital, nervous, respiratory …” FAERS holds 2,124 reports naming it through July 30, 2026; the reaction reported most often, leaving out the conditions it is used for, product-use terms and outcomes, is serum ferritin increased (169 reports).
- Generic listed
Check it at the source: the deferoxamine FDA label on DailyMed (effective June 17, 2025, Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation); the FDA FAERS public dashboard.
What does the label list?
From the label: adverse reactionsMost common adverse reactions are injection reactions (local and systemic), hypersensitivity reactions, infections with Yersinia and Mucormycosis, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, hematologic, hepatic, musculoskeletal, urogenital, nervous, respiratory, ocular and hearing.
From the label: adverse reactions, continuedThe following clinically significant adverse reactions are described elsewhere in the labeling: Hypersensitivity Reactions [see Warnings and Precautions (5.1)] Auditory and Ocular Toxicity [see Warnings and Precautions (5.2)] Renal Toxicity [see Warnings and Precautions (5.3)] Respiratory Toxicity [see Warnings and Precautions (5.4)] Growth Suppression [see Warnings and Precautions (5.5)] Serious Infections [see Warnings and Precautions (5.6)] Cardiac Dysfunction with Concomitant Use of Vitamin C [see Warnings and Precautions (5.7)] Risks of Desferal Treatment in Patients with Aluminum Overload [see Warnings and Precautions (5.8)] Effects on Ability to Drive and Use Machines [see Warnings and Precautions (5.9)] Most common adverse reactions are injection reactions (local and systemic), hypersensitivity reactions, infections with Yersinia and Mucormycosis, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, hematologic, hepatic, musculoskeletal, urogenital, nervous, respiratory, ocular and hearing. ( 6 ) To report SUSPECTED ADVERSE REACTIONS, contact Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation at 1-888-669-6682 or FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088 or www.fda.gov/medwatch. 6.1 Clinical Trials Experience The following adverse reactions associated with the use of Desferal were identified in clinical studies or postmarketing reports. …
Source: FDA drug label, Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, effective June 17, 2025 (SPL set a7174843-5965-49fc-b842-f7eff7b48bbc), via openFDA; the full label on DailyMed
What do FAERS reports show?
2,124 reports list deferoxamine among the medicines taken, each a report of something that happened, not proof the medicine caused it; 412 are coded as a death and 811 as a hospital stay. Counts follow how widely a medicine is used and watched, and they are not a measure of how risky it is. Of the 22 reactions below, 8 are named by the same term (in US spelling) in the label's adverse reactions, warnings or patient leaflet; a reaction the label does not name may still be there under another word, and a report does not show that the medicine caused it.
Reports received each year
The 25 most reported reactions
Source: FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) via openFDA, reports through July 30, 2026; reactions as MedDRA preferred terms
What next?
- Deferoxamine: the full record
- label, generics, price, shortages, recalls
- Report a side effect to the FDA
- MedWatch
- Side effects hub
- the most reported medicines and reactions