Cancer drug prices slashed by up to 93%

New Delhi: The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) has reset the maximum retail price (MRP), the most a shop can charge, on 543 versions of 137 cancer drugs. The biggest drop in rupees is on thiotepa, a chemotherapy injection used before stem cell transplants and to treat bladder cancer. A 100 mg vial of Samtepa goes from Rs 80,071.86 to Rs 7,150.33, a cut of Rs 72,921.53, or 91.1%.

In percentage terms, the sharpest fall is on palbociclib, a breast cancer drug. A pack of 21 Palbopro 125 mg capsules drops 93.3%, from Rs 40,421.33 to Rs 2,720.

NPPA estimates patients will save Rs 2,500 crore to Rs 3,500 crore a year in out-of-pocket spending. The order comes as the Supreme Court considers wider controls on medicine prices, and weeks after a Mint report on 16 September found private hospitals marking up medical supplies by as much as 2,841%. Extensive markdowns were also notified for other biological and targeted therapies.

Pertuzumab, prescribed for HER2-positive breast cancer, saw the retail price of its Hertumab formulation fall by Rs 64,358 per vial, dropping from Rs 94,951 to Rs 30,593.

Another Pertuzumab brand, Lupiher 420 mg, saw a reduction of Rs 46,161.65, taking its price from

Rs 83,520 to Rs 37,358.35 per vial.

Price cuts were also recorded in Bevacizumab, a biological therapy prescribed for metastatic colorectal cancer, non-small cell lung cancer, cervical cancer, and ovarian tumours. The Ivzumab 400 mg injection saw a price drop of Rs 56,340.12, coming down from Rs 69,852.12 to Rs 13,512, while Bevacizab 400 mg fell by Rs 56,248.34, taking its retail price from Rs 65,205.09 down to Rs 8,956.75. Cizumab 400 mg was reduced by Rs 47,605, dropping from Rs 57,816 to Rs 10,211.

The regulator's notification also led to price reductions for oral therapies. Olaparib tablets, used in BRCA-mutated ovarian, breast, and pancreatic cancers, saw the Brcaone 150 mg pack fall by Rs 34,790.37, dropping from Rs 46,364.05 to Rs 11,573.68. Peg L-Aparagin, an injectable formulation of Pegasparginase used to treat acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, was reduced by Rs 34,079.12, from Rs 41,845.97 to Rs 7,766.85.

For metastatic prostate cancer, Abiraterone acetate tablets sold under the brand Abirat 250 mg fell by Rs 32,024.33, reducing the price of a 120-tablet bottle from Rs 36,088.81 down to Rs 4,064.48. The regulatory move also comes against the backdrop of reports that revealed profit markups of up to 2,841% on medical consumables billed to patients by private hospitals, based on findings from a Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration inquiry. The inquiry found wide margins between procurement rates and printed retail prices across products such as infusion sets, syringes, nebulizers, and catheters, prompting representations to the pricing regulator for margin caps on medical devices.

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The Hans India