Posted by Michael Wonder on 26 Dec 2017
Cancer drug price rises 1,400% with no generic to challenge it
25 December 2017 - Lomustine among 319 drugs with expired patents but no copies; FDA trying to boost competition.
Since 2013, the price of a 40-year-old, off-patent cancer drug in the U.S. has risen 1,400%, putting the life-extending medicine out of reach for some patients.
Introduced in 1976 to treat brain tumours and Hodgkin's lymphoma, lomustine has no generic competition, giving seller NextSource Biotechnology LLC significant pricing power.
The U.S. FDA is seeking to encourage more competition for drugs like lomustine, one of at least 319 drugs for which U.S. patents have expired but which have no generic copies, according to a list the agency published earlier this month.
