Does mitomycin expire?
The printed date covers the sealed pack. Once mitomycin is opened, mixed or diluted, its label sets a second and usually much shorter limit — quoted below, per product.
Shortest limit on any mitomycin label: 48 hours
“Sodium Chloride Injection is stable for 48 hours at room temperature.”
That applies to the product it is printed on, not to every form of mitomycin — check which one you have against the list below.
What the labels say
“Sodium Chloride Injection is stable for 48 hours at room temperature.”
On the label for MITOMYCIN · DailyMed
“If unrefrigerated, discard after 7 days.”
On the label for Mitomycin · DailyMed
“L, mitomycin is stable for 14 days refrigerated or 7 days at room temperature.”
On the label for MITOMYCIN · DailyMed
“L, mitomycin for injection is stable for 14 days refrigerated or 7 days at room temperature.”
On the label for MITOMYCIN · DailyMed
“Discard 7 days after reconstitution.”
On the label for ZUSDURI · DailyMed
“Store solution under refrigeration 2° to 8°C (36° to 46°F), discard after 14 days.”
On the label for Mitomycin · DailyMed
“Store solution under refrigeration 2° to 8 °C (36° to 46°F), discard after 14 days.”
On the label for MITOMYCIN · DailyMed
How the label says to keep mitomycin
Storage is the other half of the question: the stability behind any date assumes these conditions, and a medicine kept outside them ages faster than the calendar says.
- “Store dry powder at 25°C (77°F); excursions permitted between 15° and 30°C (59° and 86°F).”
- “Protect from light.”
- “Store solution under refrigeration 2° to 8°C (36° to 46°F), discard after 14 days.”
- “16 HOW SUPPLIED/STORAGE AND HANDLING 16.”
- “and Handling Storage Store kits at 20°C to 25°C (68°F to 77°F).”
- “Store dry powder at 25°C, excursion permitted between 15°C and 30°C, protected from light.”
- “Store solution under refrigeration 2° to 8 °C (36° to 46°F), discard after 14 days.”
- “Store dry powder at 20° to 25°C (68° to 77°F) [See USP Controlled Room Temperature.”
Frequently asked questions
Does mitomycin expire?
Two different clocks apply and only one of them is the printed date. The date on a sealed pack is the manufacturer's guarantee for the unopened product. Once it is opened, mixed or diluted, the label imposes its own limit — as tight as 48 hours on some mitomycin products, and that is the number quoted on this page.
Can I still use mitomycin after the date on the box?
This page cannot tell you that, and nor can any page. The FDA's own shelf-life programme found 88% of tested lots stayed within specification at least a year past expiry — and concluded in the same breath that lot-to-lot variation means this can only be confirmed by testing each lot. What you can check at home is the in-use limit above and whether the product has been stored as the label requires. Ask a pharmacist about a specific pack; they will also dispose of what you no longer need.
Why do different mitomycin products have different limits?
Because they are different formulations. A suspension that gets mixed with water, a pen that gets carried at room temperature, and a sealed tablet do not behave alike, so each manufacturer's label sets its own limit and each is shown here with the product it belongs to. We never merge them into one number for the molecule.
More on mitomycin
Quoted from FDA labels for reference, not medical advice, and not a suggestion to use anything past its limit. If you are unsure whether a pack is still good, a pharmacist can tell you and can dispose of it safely.