Posted by Michael Wonder on 26 Aug 2020
Cystic fibrosis drug could reduce severe disease, deaths if made available to Canadians
25 August 2020 - Talia D’Alessio has been living with cystic fibrosis since she was nine months old.
“My parents were told I wouldn’t live past 39. … With me being 39 years old now, it’s something that I’ve always had to live with,” she said.
Trikafta costs US$300,000 a year, which could make it inaccessible to people in Canada if it becomes available. But the price tag is not out of the ordinary for a drug targeting a rare disease like cystic fibrosis.
That’s why Cystic Fibrosis Canada is advocating to make this drug accessible to Canadians.
But the drug manufacturer, Vertex Pharmaceuticals, has not yet submitted the drug to Health Canada for approval.
“The main reason for that cited by the company are changes to the way drugs are regulated in Canada,” said Wallenberg.
