Deferiprone

Deferiprone (tradenames include Ferriprox) is an oral drug that chelates iron and is used to treat thalassaemia major.

It is currently licenced for use in the Europe and Asia, but not in Canada and the United States.

Controversy
Deferiprone was at the centre of a protracted struggle between Nancy Olivieri, a Canadian haematologist and researcher, and the Hospital for Sick Children and pharmaceutical giant Apotex, that started in 1996. Dr. Olivieri's data suggested that deferiprone lead to progressive hepatic fibrosis, a finding which is in dispute.