[1] Roxadustat received its first global approval in China on 17 December 2018,[4] for the treatment of anemia caused by CKD in patients who are dialysis-dependent.

[1] Roxadustat is reported to increase VEGF, a signal protein that can activate tumor growth[8] and also is considered to cause pulmonary hypertension.

[9] In phase 3 trial conducted at 29 sites in China, roxadustat treatment was found to cause hyperkalemia, i.e., increase in serum potassium, and metabolic acidosis in patients.

[12] Notably, prior to the vote of the FDA committee, FibroGen and AstraZeneca announced that the company had changed parameters used to analyze cardiovascular safety data, which made the drug appear safer than it is.

[18] In September 2023, she was banned from the game for four years by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) for two anti-doping violations: taking roxadustat, and anomalies in her athlete biological passport,[14] although the Court of Arbitration for Sport reduced the ban to nine months in March 2024, on the grounds that roxadustat was in Keto MCT, a contaminated supplement, and the doping was unintentional.