Porfimer sodium

Also Known As: Porfimer sodium, Photofrin

Porfimer sodium, sold as Photofrin, is a photosensitizer used in photodynamic therapy and radiation therapy and for palliative treatment of obstructing endobronchial non-small cell lung carcinoma and obstructing esophageal cancer.

Porfimer is a mixture of oligomers formed by ether and ester linkages of up to eight porphyrin units. In practice, a red light source emitting at 630 nm is used to excite the Porfimer oligomers.

It was approved in Canada in 1993 for the treatment of bladder cancer[2]. It was approved in Japan in 1994 (for early stage lung cancer?)[2]. It was approved by the U.S. FDA in December 1995 esophageal cancer, and in 1998, it was approved for the treatment of early non-small cell lung cancer[2].

In August 2003 the FDA approved its use for Barrett's esophagus.[3]

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