Archive for January, 2010
Battle to find Cellcept
Rea has just had another battle to get hold of cellcept. Usual story – all supplies used up. She finally got it from her very local, small pharmacist who is now trying to find further stocks for her and one other patient they have on cellcept. Rea is not alone. Annie’s pharmacist has experienced a recurrent problem getting hold of the pills, but he has, up to now, never let her down.
The difficulty seems to be that wholesalers use up their quota of cellcept quite quickly. Smaller pharmacists seem, in our experience, much more willing to order direct from Roche (the manufacturer of Cellcept), if the wholesalers have used up their supplies. Smaller pharmacists are, in our opinion, also able to build up a relationship with their customers and understand their illness, and the complications inherent in each type of medication their customers are using. As Rea said: ‘My local pharmacist spends a lot of time with me, working out when I am next likely to need medication, and trying to ensure that the medication will be readily available’.
One person we know was told by the “large chemist”, to just ask your GP to prescribe a different immuno-suppressant!
Annie always tries to make sure she has at least two weeks of pills left when she requests her repeat prescription to allow her pharmacist enough time to hunt down a supply.
Do others encounter this difficulty? Perhaps we need to draw the problem to the attention of Roche. What do you think?
Taking your Meds!
Its obvious I know, but it is crucial to take your meds when you are supposed to, and as you are instructed to. › Continue reading
Zenapax (Daclizumab) discontinued
I read today that Roche has announced that it has discontinued Zenapax (daclizumab sterile concentrate for injection), an IgG1 monoclonal antibody. They say that the decision to discontinue Zenapax is due to the diminishing market demand and the availability of alternative treatments and is not due to any safety issue. The existing supply of Zenapax is expected to be depleted by January 2010 based on current demand.
Zenapax has been used successfully to treat a number of patients with birdshot in the US who have failed to control their birdshot with other medications or been unable to tolerate the side effects of other drugs. It will leave a number of people who are prescribed this, angry, as the news about the withdrawal of this drug was at short notice and their doctors will now have to find alternative medication. Often this will not be straightforward as this drug will have been prescribed only after a number of the more usual combinations have been tried and have failed.
I do not believe that this medication has been widely used in the UK for birdshot treatment but it is a major blow that one of our speciaist arsenal of drugs has been removed though no real good reason other than economics.
If you have been affected by this decision by Roche we would welcome your feedback.
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