Cancer meds among 378 drugs at risk of running out

Cancer and stroke drugs are among nearly 400 medicines at risk of shortage in the UK, The Independent can reveal. NHS England has identified 378 medicines as having either no supplier or only one supplier, including bendamustine, a chemotherapy drug used to treat cancers such as non-Hodgkin lymphoma and some leukaemias.

- REBECCA THOMAS HEALTH CORRESPONDENT

Other at-risk medicines, according to Medicines UK, which represents manufacturers of generic drugs in the UK, include urokinase, which is used to treat blood clots and pulmonary embolism - a life-threatening blockage of the lung that can cause a stroke - and flupentixol, which is used to treat schizophrenia.

Around 80 of the drugs included on NHS England's new list are medicines for which there is no manufacturer, meaning they would be difficult to obtain if the current supply ran out. The remaining 300 drugs have only one manufacturer signed up, meaning the supply could suffer if the supplier chose not to renew their contract.

Medicines UK warned that this could mean doctors having to find alternatives for patients, and that it could leave the UK having to pay higher prices if demand outstrips supply. Mark Samuels, chief executive of Medicines UK, said: "The list includes products of critical priority, and the ambition is to target those medicines representing the most serious risk to supply resilience, which could lead to shortages affecting patient care."