USA Will Import Cancer Drug From India

According to the AFP, the United States is solving a shortage of a drug used to treat various types of cancer by importing a comparable drug from India.

The Food and Drug Administration has worked out a temporary deal with India-based Sun Pharma Global FZE  to get US patients Lipodox. In a statement released by the FDA, “Lipodox will be imported as an alternative to Doxil” which is used to treat ovarian, bone marrow, and AIDS-related skin cancers.

The article also states “prescription drug shortages in the United States nearly tripled from 2005 to 2010, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.” These shortage problems have partially been addressed by an executive order signed by President Obama in late 2011 to “strengthen the FDA’s power to predict and tackle potential shortages of prescription drugs and to halt illegal price gouging of life-saving medicines during supply shortfalls.”

Have you experienced any shortage problems with your medications? What was the remedy advised by your doctor?

How Health Literate Are You?

A recent blog post by Chris Flemming is drawing attention to how little most Americans understand about their health conditions. The federal government is behind a new push to rectify the problem. The Health and Human Services (HHS) Department has launched three new initiatives to make gaining access to this information easier for the general public. The Affordable Care Act, National Action Plan to Improve Health Literacy, and the Plain Writing Act of 2010 are all designed to do just that.

Flemming points out that if a patient does not understand their condition, prescription, or care instructions they can fall victim to unnecessary hospital or emergency room visits, as well as inadequate  “overall health status.”

To find out more about these initiatives please see Howard Koh’s original article.

How often do  you lave the doctor’s office without fully understanding what the outcome was? Do you find it is easy to get the answers you need?

Pfizer Birth Control Recall

An error in the packaging of birth control has led to  a major recall by Pfizer. CNN reports that over 1 million packets may not prevent pregnancies because the order of the pills is not correct. The recall list states that the problem is with  its Lo/Ovral-28 brand tablets, and generic-brands Norgestrel and Ethinyl Estradiol tablets distributed under the Akrimax Rx Products name.

To see a complete list of the packets recalled please visit Pfizer’s website.