Prescription medicine
Etoposide Brand names: Avopef, Vepesid, Etopophos
Etoposide (Vepesid) is a prescription medicine with an FDA approval on record since 1983. FDA's NDC Directory lists it from 6 generic labelers.
- Generic listed
- Boxed warning
Check it at the source: the etoposide FDA label on DailyMed (effective September 14, 2023, Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA Inc.); the NDA 18768 record on Drugs@FDA; every etoposide label on DailyMed.
Highlights of the record
FDA label of September 14, 2023; NDC Directory, Drugs@FDA and Orange Book, October 8, 2026
Etoposide should be administered under the supervision of a qualified physician experienced in the use of cancer chemotherapeutic agents. Severe myelosuppression with resulting infection or bleeding may occur.
Used for
From the label: indications and usageEtoposide Injection, USP is indicated in the management of the following neoplasms: Refractory Testicular Tumors Etoposide injection in combination therapy with other approved chemotherapeutic agents in patients with refractory testicular tumors who have already received appropriate surgical, chemotherapeutic, and radiotherapeutic therapy.
Forms and strengths
- 50 mg
- 100 mg
- 20 mg/ml
- 100 mg/5ml
- 500 mg/25ml
Injection; injection (solution) (concentrate); capsule; injection (powder) (lyophilized) for solution; injection (solution).
On the market
- Earliest approval on file
- November 10, 1983 Vepesid, Corden Pharma; Drugs@FDA’s file, where older or withdrawn approvals can be missing
- Generic approvals
- 15 first February 10, 1994; 5 with a marketed status in Drugs@FDA
- Labelers listed (NDC)
- 10 of which 6 under generic applications, 4 under brand applications, repackagers included
Supply and safety
- Pharmacy cost (NADAC)
- Not in the survey
- Shortage (FDA)
- No current entry
- Recalls by its makers (FDA)
- 1 since 2019 0 Class I among all firms' recalls; latest June 12, 2019
- FAERS reports
- 74,560 through July 30, 2026
What is etoposide used for?
From the label: indications and usageEtoposide Injection, USP is indicated in the management of the following neoplasms: Refractory Testicular Tumors Etoposide injection in combination therapy with other approved chemotherapeutic agents in patients with refractory testicular tumors who have already received appropriate surgical, chemotherapeutic, and radiotherapeutic therapy. Small Cell Lung Cancer Etoposide injection and/or capsules in combination with other approved chemotherapeutic agents as first line treatment in patients with small cell lung cancer.
Conditions named in the indications of etoposide's FDA labels, with every medicine labeled for each:
From other etoposide labelsLung cancer: Small Cell Lung Cancer ETOPOPHOS is indicated, in combination with cisplatin, for first-line treatment of patients with small cell lung cancer.
FDA pharmacologic class: Topoisomerase Inhibitor.
Source: FDA drug label (Etoposide), Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA Inc., effective September 14, 2023 (SPL set 6dfedeff-a807-4405-a482-2f7109ad31c9), via openFDA; the full label on DailyMed
Is there a generic for etoposide (Vepesid)?
The FDA approved the first generic etoposide on February 10, 1994. 15 generic applications are approved; 5 of them carry a current (not discontinued) marketing status in Drugs@FDA; that status is not evidence that the generic is on sale.
FDA's NDC Directory lists etoposide from 6 labelers under a generic (ANDA) application and from 4 brand labelers. A listing means the company has registered the product for sale; it does not show that every pharmacy stocks it.
- 1983 earliest approval on file
- 1994 first generic approved
- red ticks recalls
Source: Drugs@FDA, FDA NDC Directory and the Orange Book (openFDA bulk files, October 8, 2026)
Has etoposide been recalled?
The FDA's Enforcement Report lists 1 recall naming etoposide since 2019: 0 Class I (the most serious), 1 Class II, 0 Class III; 0 still ongoing. A recall names products and lots, not every product of the medicine.
| Started | Class | Company | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
| June 12, 2019 | Class II | Infusion Options, Inc. | Lack of Assurance of Sterility |
Source: FDA Enforcement Report (drug recalls) via openFDA, through October 8, 2026
What does the etoposide label say about other medicines?
The etoposide label names 1 other medicine in its interaction, contraindication or warning sections. The labels of 10 other medicines name etoposide. The sentences are the labels' own; a label lists what its studies and reports found, not every interaction.
| Medicine named | Section | What the label says |
|---|---|---|
| Warfarin | drug interactions | DRUG INTERACTIONS Warfarin: Co-administration of ETOPOPHOS with warfarin can result in elevated international normalized ratio (INR). |
Other labels that name etoposide
Source: FDA drug label (Etoposide), Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA Inc., effective September 14, 2023 (SPL set 6dfedeff-a807-4405-a482-2f7109ad31c9), via openFDA; the full label on DailyMed
What do FAERS reports show for etoposide?
The FDA Adverse Event Reporting System holds 74,560 reports that list etoposide among the medicines taken, through July 30, 2026, each a report of something that happened, not proof the medicine caused it; 18,069 are coded as a death and 25,309 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.
Reports received each year
The most reported reactions
Source: FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS) via openFDA, reports through July 30, 2026
What else is labeled for the same conditions as etoposide?
16 other medicines are given the same way (intravenous) and in the same FDA class as etoposide or labeled mainly for the same use (lung cancer), the same class first. Lung cancer lists all 55 medicines labeled for it, by any route. The first 8 are below. They are listed as records, not as substitutes: whether one can replace another is a prescriber's decision.
| Medicine | Shared indication | Generic labelers (intravenous) | Pharmacy cost | Shortage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Topotecan | Lung cancer | 4 labelers | n/a | No current entry |
| Pemetrexed | Lung cancer | 15 labelers | n/a | A presentation being discontinued |
| Nivolumab | Lung cancer | none listed | n/a | No current entry |
| Atezolizumab | Lung cancer | none listed | n/a | No current entry |
| Durvalumab | Lung cancer | none listed | n/a | No current entry |
| Ipilimumab | Lung cancer | none listed | n/a | No current entry |
| Ramucirumab | Lung cancer | none listed | n/a | No current entry |
| Telisotuzumab vedotin | Lung cancer | none listed | n/a | No current entry |
Source: FDA drug labels (indications), NDC Directory, NADAC of October 7, 2026, FDA shortages (October 8, 2026)
What next?
- Alternatives to etoposide
- 16 medicines for the same use
- Other topoisomerase inhibitors
- the pharmacologic class, with prices and generics
- Etoposide side effects
- the label's list beside FAERS reports
- Check an interaction
- what two or more labels say about each other