Protests over FDA delay of Provenge to take place Friday

NEW YORK Opposition to a decision by the Food and Drug Administration to delay approval of a drug for prostate cancer has sparked protests, scheduled to happen nationwide on May 30.

CareToLive, an organization based in Thorofare, N.J., is sponsoring protests in eight cities in light of the FDA’s decision last May to delay approval of Provenge, an immunotherapy treatment that has been shown to extend the lives of men with late-stage prostate cancer. Seattle-based Dendreon Corporation, the drug’s creator, announced the results in 2004.

CareToLive was founded in response to the FDA’s decision, though it has denied that it is affiliated with Dendreon. Protests will occur in New York, Seattle, Chicago, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Tampa, Fla., Dearborn, Mich., and Madison, Wis.