The ongoing war in the Middle East has led to a shortage of raw materials in the market and has directly affected the Indian medical sector. In view of this situation, the Government of India has approved the most important drugs used for cancer, Cisplatin and Carb.“The government has allowed the price hike of Platinum and Archery vaccines. A total of eighty applications for price hike were sent to the government department and an inter-ministerial committee examined them and approved the price hike of four drugs. The pharmaceutical companies could not supply these drugs at the earlier fixed prices due to increase in price of key ingredients and increase in production cost.
In recent weeks, there has been an acute shortage of these anti-cancer drugs in various parts of the country. According to medical expertsCisplatin and carboplatin are mainstays of treatment for many types of cancer, including lung, uterine, mouth and bladder. Doctors of leading hospitals and cancer research institutes of the country said that the routine treatment of patients is being disrupted due to shortage of drugs. Drug shortages often force planned treatments to be delayed or other less effective methods to be followed, which can reduce the patient’s chances of recovery.
According to pharmacists and expertsThis problem is not only one of price, but also related to the global shortage of specialized raw materials. Pharmaceutical companies are forced to stop production as the price of these raw materials imported from abroad has increased too much. Medical workers have requested the government to increase the production of these drugs within the country and take special measures to make the entire supply chain transparent and safe. Regular supply of these essential life-saving drugs in the market is expected to resume after the government allows the price hike, so that thousands of under-treated patients can get timely treatment without any inconvenience.