User:Mr. Ibrahem/Mesna

Mesna, sold under the brand name Mesnex among others, is a medication used in those taking cyclophosphamide or ifosfamide to decrease the risk of bleeding from the bladder. It is used either by mouth or injection into a vein.

Common side effects include headache, vomiting, sleepiness, loss of appetite, cough, rash, and joint pain. Serious side effects include allergic reactions. Use during pregnancy appears to be safe for the baby but this use has not been well studied. Mesna is an organosulfur compound. It works by altering the breakdown products of cyclophosphamide and ifosfamide found in the urine making them less toxic.

Mesna was approved for medical use in the United States in 1988. It is on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines. The wholesale cost in the developing world is about US$3.50 per 400 mg vial. In the United Kingdom this amount costs the NHS about £3.95.