Since November, people from all over the United States diagnosed with cancer can’t get their medications, even one of the cheapest brands.
People started noticing the issue in November when one of the U.S.’s biggest suppliers of cisplatin and carboplatin stopped producing the medicine. Cisplatin and carboplatin are one of the most crucial yet cheap medications for cancer patients, and they help treat over 500,000 patients in the U.S. yearly dealing with all kinds of cancers.
Last month, a survey targeting cancer centers and the medication patients could access was released, and the results were concerning. About 93% of patients couldn’t find enough carboplatin, and 70% couldn’t find enough cisplatin.
“It’s the most nauseous I’ve ever felt. Our office stayed open during COVID; we never had to stop treating patients. We got them vaccinated, kept them safe, and now I can’t get them a $10 drug,” said Dr. Bonny Moore, an oncologist in Virginia. She also added that they hold staff meetings whenever they don’t have patients to figure out solutions.
Not only is Dr. Moore frustrated, but many others are too.
Dr. Mark Ratain, a cancer doctor and a pharmacologist at the University of Chicago, called this crisis insane. He even compared it to home construction: “Your roof is caving in, but you want to build a basketball court in the backyard because your wife is pregnant with twin boys and you want them to be NBA stars when they grow up?”
As of June 13th, The FDA listed 137 medications as ‘in shortage’, including some smaller medications made by tinier companies.
The crisis is evident, and there is little we can do. The demand in the market isn’t being met and is increasing every day. Hopefully, lives aren’t getting lost because of this problem, and governments and organizations are finding solutions to the problem!
People started noticing the issue in November when one of the U.S.’s biggest suppliers of cisplatin and carboplatin stopped producing the medicine. Cisplatin and carboplatin are one of the most crucial yet cheap medications for cancer patients, and they help treat over 500,000 patients in the U.S. yearly dealing with all kinds of cancers.
Last month, a survey targeting cancer centers and the medication patients could access was released, and the results were concerning. About 93% of patients couldn’t find enough carboplatin, and 70% couldn’t find enough cisplatin.
“It’s the most nauseous I’ve ever felt. Our office stayed open during COVID; we never had to stop treating patients. We got them vaccinated, kept them safe, and now I can’t get them a $10 drug,” said Dr. Bonny Moore, an oncologist in Virginia. She also added that they hold staff meetings whenever they don’t have patients to figure out solutions.
Not only is Dr. Moore frustrated, but many others are too.
Dr. Mark Ratain, a cancer doctor and a pharmacologist at the University of Chicago, called this crisis insane. He even compared it to home construction: “Your roof is caving in, but you want to build a basketball court in the backyard because your wife is pregnant with twin boys and you want them to be NBA stars when they grow up?”
As of June 13th, The FDA listed 137 medications as ‘in shortage’, including some smaller medications made by tinier companies.
The crisis is evident, and there is little we can do. The demand in the market isn’t being met and is increasing every day. Hopefully, lives aren’t getting lost because of this problem, and governments and organizations are finding solutions to the problem!