LAHORE: Pakistan said on Monday 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.
The Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) said the health authorities in Punjab, the most populous province, had launched the investigation into local use of the drug Avastin, which is licensed for use in Pakistan.
“Incidents of loss of vision in diabetic patients have been reported following treatment with Altered/Dispensed/Diluted Avastin injection,” the regulator said in a statement.
Javed Akram, the province’s Minister for Specialized Health, said police were questioning two men they believe to be the drug’s 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.
Following the incidents, the DRAP instructed the importer to recall the suspected batches of Avastin 100mg injection, which it said had been created illegally.
“The sale/distribution of registered Avastin Injection has been put on halt till verification of its quality through sampling and laboratory testing to safeguard public health,” it said in a statement on its website.
On its website, Roche said Avastin was approved in more than 130 countries, including the United States, to treat several types of cancer. Roche’s Pakistan spokesman did not answer several calls.
Avastin was used as an eye treatment off-label, meaning outside of the approved use. Cancer drug Avastin, when used at much lower doses, is similar to eye drug Lucentis, and is used in many countries as a low-cost option to treat certain blindness-causing conditions.
Alam Sher, Punjab’s deputy drug controller who filed the police complaint against the distributors, told Reuters that some companies buy Avastin and repackage it in smaller doses to make it more affordable for patients.
A sharp drop in the value of the local currency against the US dollar has inflated the price of drugs in Pakistan, many of which are either imported or based on imported ingredients.
Record high inflation has also diminished the purchasing power of many people.
Pakistan investigates local distributors of Roche cancer drug after 12 diabetes patients go blind
https://arab.news/535rj
Pakistan investigates local distributors of Roche cancer drug after 12 diabetes patients go blind
- Drug Regulatory Authority says investigation launched in Punjab into local use of cancer drug Avastin, which is licensed for use in Pakistan
- Avastin, when used in lower doses, is similar to eye drug Lucentis, used as low-cost option to treat certain blindness-causing conditions
Peace can only prevail if Afghanistan renounces support for ‘terrorism’— Pakistan defense chief
- Pakistan’s chief of defense forces visits South Waziristan district bordering Afghanistan
- Pakistan says has killed 481 Afghan Taliban operatives since clashes began last Thursday
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Chief of Defense Forces Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir said on Wednesday that peace with Afghanistan can only prevail if Kabul renounces support for “terrorism” and “terrorist” organizations, the military’s media wing said as the two countries remain locked in conflict.
Fighting between the two neighbors, the worst in decades, broke out last Thursday night after Afghan forces attacked Pakistan’s military installations along their shared border. Afghanistan said its attacks were in response to earlier airstrikes by Pakistan against alleged militant hideouts in its country.
Pakistan accuses Afghanistan of sheltering militant outfits such as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) on its soil who have launched attacks against Pakistani civilians and security forces in recent years. Kabul denies the allegations.
Munir visited Wana town in Pakistan’s South Waziristan district to review the security situation and troops’ operational preparedness at the Afghan border, the Pakistani military’s media wing said in a statement.
“The Field Marshal reiterated that peace could only prevail between both sides if the Afghan Taliban renounced their support for terrorism and terrorist organizations,” the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said.
The military chief said the use of Afghan soil by militant outfits to launch attacks against Pakistan was unacceptable, vowing that “all necessary measures” would be taken to neutralize cross-border threats.
During the visit, Munir was briefed by military commanders about ongoing intelligence-based operations and measures being taken by the military to manage the border with Afghanistan.
He was also briefed about “Operation Ghazab Lil Haq” or “Wrath for the Truth,” the name Pakistan has given to its military operation against Afghan forces, the ISPR said.
The Pakistani military chief spoke to troops deployed in the area, praising their vigilance, professional conduct and high morale, the ISPR said.
Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said on Wednesday that the military has killed 481 Taliban operatives, injured more than 690 and destroyed 226 Afghan checkposts since clashes began.
Arab News has been unable to verify claims by both sides about the damages they claim to have inflicted on each other.
Afghanistan has signaled it is open for dialogue but Pakistan rejected the offer, saying it would continue its military operations till its objectives were achieved.
Since the conflict began, diplomatic efforts have intensified with several countries, including global bodies such as the European Union and United Nations, urging restraint and calling for talks.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif that Ankara would help reinstate a ceasefire, the Turkish Presidency said on Tuesday, as other countries that had offered to mediate have since been hit by the conflict in the Gulf.
