Pakistan: Govt investigates distributors of Swiss cancer drug after patients go blind

The Pakistani government said on Monday (September 25) that it was investigating two local distributors of Swiss pharmaceutical company Roche's Avastin cancer drug after 12 diabetic patients injected with the drug went blind. In a statement, the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) said that health authorities in Punjab province launched a probe into the local use of Avastin.

"Incidents of loss of vision in diabetic patients have been reported following treatment with Altered/Dispensed/Diluted Avastin injection," the DRAP said. Following the incident, the regulator instructed the importer to recall the suspected batches of Avastin 100mg injection, which it said had been created illegally.

"This product is approved by the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) to treat Colorectal and other metastatic carcinomas. The use of this drug product in diabetic retinopathy or other ophthalmic conditions is one of the off-label uses and is not approved by DRAP," the statement added.

The DRAP also said the sale and distribution of the cancer drug's injection had been put on halt till verification of its quality through sampling and laboratory testing to safeguard public health. It asked healthcare professionals, pharmacists and chemists to stop the distribution, dispensing and administration of this product immediately, check their stocks and stop supplying this product.

According to a report by the news agency Reuters, Avastin, when used at much lower doses, is similar to the eye drug Lucentis and is used in many countries as a low-cost option to treat certain blindness-causing conditions.

However, Roche said in a statement that Avastin is not approved for any use in the eye.

Meanwhile, Punjab province's Minister for Specialised Health Javed Akram said the police were questioning two men they believe to be the drug distributors in the state. "A high-level committee has been constituted to probe the issue. A case has been registered against the distributor and his aide," Akram said, Reuters reported.

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