Shortages of at least four medicines for the treatment of multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) have reportedly hit a few parts of the country. The Telegram cited doctors and patients’ rights groups as saying that the shortage has affected many patients with MDR-TB seeking treatment under the Centre’s national TB control programme in Calcutta, Mumbai and Delhi.
The report published on Tuesday said the shortages of drugs such as cycloserine, linezolid and clofazimine midway through patients’ treatment will increase the risk of treatment failure or death. It may also pose a fresh challenge to the country’s plan to "eliminate" TB by 2025, the doctors were quoted as saying.
Several patients have complained about the drug shortage, the report said, adding that two Mumbai-based patients’ rights networks of TB survivors, health experts and lawyers have also flagged concerns over the reports of "stockouts of several drugs used for the treatment of MDR-TB from government TB clinics since June this year".
Meanwhile, a network called the Jan Swasthya Abhiyan in Mumbai has catalogued shortages of cycloserine, linezolid, clofazimine, pyridoxine and demand, the Telegraph reported.
A doctor at the Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (IPGMER) told The Telegraph that these are only anecdotal accounts. They, however, said the shortage "signal a supply problem".
According to the Times of India, several activists and patient groups wrote to Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, urging him to intervene to expedite the procurement of these medicines.
How does drug shortage impacts MDR-TB patient
The IPGMER doctor informed that it is "critical" that all patients receive all drugs regularly. "The Central TB Division (the unit of the Union health ministry engaged in TB control efforts) has been urging patients to take the free TB treatment, including treatment for MDR-TB, from government clinics. They should ensure the medicines are available," the doctor said.
Meanwhile, Ganesh Acharya and Brinelle D’Souza with the Jan Swasthya Abhiyan have said patients whose treatment is interrupted by the shortages face the risk of worsening resistance.
What triggered the shortage?
The Central TB Division, which is responsible for procuring and distributing these medicines to all the states, has not yet responded to the concerns among doctors about drug shortages. However, there are allegations that the division did not initiate tenders earlier this year, resulting in these stockouts.
The current MDR-TB treatment regimen used in India involves the use of multiple drugs for up to 18 months.
Meanwhile, in Maharashtra, which has thousands of multi-drug resistant TB cases, the BMC downplayed the shortage, saying that they currently have the stocks and are prepared to acquire medicines for the next months, the Times of India reported.
Besides, Maharashtra TB Officer Dr Sunita Golait told the Times of India that the state has provided funds to Mumbai where the shortage is most acute to expedite the purchase of drugs.
Recently, a global anti-tuberculosis group said Johnson Johnson and Indian drugmaker Lupin supply their versions of the tuberculosis drug bedaquiline at a significantly cheaper price in low- and middle-income countries.
The United Nations-backed Stop TB Partnership said J&J's new price of $130 and Lupin's price of $194 for a six-month course of the treatment represented a 55 percent and 33 percent price reduction, respectively.
The report published on Tuesday said the shortages of drugs such as cycloserine, linezolid and clofazimine midway through patients’ treatment will increase the risk of treatment failure or death. It may also pose a fresh challenge to the country’s plan to "eliminate" TB by 2025, the doctors were quoted as saying.
Several patients have complained about the drug shortage, the report said, adding that two Mumbai-based patients’ rights networks of TB survivors, health experts and lawyers have also flagged concerns over the reports of "stockouts of several drugs used for the treatment of MDR-TB from government TB clinics since June this year".
Meanwhile, a network called the Jan Swasthya Abhiyan in Mumbai has catalogued shortages of cycloserine, linezolid, clofazimine, pyridoxine and demand, the Telegraph reported.
A doctor at the Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (IPGMER) told The Telegraph that these are only anecdotal accounts. They, however, said the shortage "signal a supply problem".
According to the Times of India, several activists and patient groups wrote to Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, urging him to intervene to expedite the procurement of these medicines.
How does drug shortage impacts MDR-TB patient
The IPGMER doctor informed that it is "critical" that all patients receive all drugs regularly. "The Central TB Division (the unit of the Union health ministry engaged in TB control efforts) has been urging patients to take the free TB treatment, including treatment for MDR-TB, from government clinics. They should ensure the medicines are available," the doctor said.
Meanwhile, Ganesh Acharya and Brinelle D’Souza with the Jan Swasthya Abhiyan have said patients whose treatment is interrupted by the shortages face the risk of worsening resistance.
What triggered the shortage?
The Central TB Division, which is responsible for procuring and distributing these medicines to all the states, has not yet responded to the concerns among doctors about drug shortages. However, there are allegations that the division did not initiate tenders earlier this year, resulting in these stockouts.
The current MDR-TB treatment regimen used in India involves the use of multiple drugs for up to 18 months.
Meanwhile, in Maharashtra, which has thousands of multi-drug resistant TB cases, the BMC downplayed the shortage, saying that they currently have the stocks and are prepared to acquire medicines for the next months, the Times of India reported.
Besides, Maharashtra TB Officer Dr Sunita Golait told the Times of India that the state has provided funds to Mumbai where the shortage is most acute to expedite the purchase of drugs.
Recently, a global anti-tuberculosis group said Johnson Johnson and Indian drugmaker Lupin supply their versions of the tuberculosis drug bedaquiline at a significantly cheaper price in low- and middle-income countries.
The United Nations-backed Stop TB Partnership said J&J's new price of $130 and Lupin's price of $194 for a six-month course of the treatment represented a 55 percent and 33 percent price reduction, respectively.
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