EU drugs watchdog probes painkiller linked to deaths

Campaigner welcomes investigation into drug after hundreds of suspected adverse reactions

An investigation has been launched by the European drugs regulator into a popular painkiller linked to a series of illnesses and deaths.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA), one of the biggest EU regulators, confirmed on Friday it was reviewing the painkiller metamizole, which can lead to agranulocytosis, a potentially fatal condition in which a patient's white blood cells are severely depleted.