Despite progress in the discovery and development of new anticancer drugs, there are significant disparities in their availability and opportunity worldwide, mainly affecting the poorest countries. This is highlighted by a global analysis of new drug launches between 1990 and 2022, published in ‘BMJ Global Health‘.
According to the study, few new cancer drugs were launched in low- and lower-middle-income countries, and the gap between rich and poor countries widened over the three decades between 1990 and 2022.
These inequities may help explain poor cancer outcomes in many countries, especially those with lower incomes, the researchers suggest.
The analysis examined all cancer drugs developed commercially from 1990 to the end of 2022, using data from Pharmaprojects, a commercial database that tracks pharmaceutical research and development activities in more than 150 countries. In addition, they used data from the World Bank and the Global Cancer Observatory to group countries and quantify the need for these drugs.
Of the 568 new cancer drugs launched globally during the study period, only 35% were launched in more than one country, while the regions with the highest number of launches were North America, Western Europe, East Asia and Australia.
In contrast, the regions where the fewest drugs were launched were Africa, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Central Europe.
Inequalities
The researchers conclude that inequalities in the launch of new drugs, as well as long delays, contribute to high cancer morbidity and mortality in low- and middle-income countries, highlighting the need for policy solutions to ensure more equitable access to these medicines globally.
For Rafael Marcos-Gragera, epidemiologist at the Epidemiology and Cancer Registry Unit of Girona of the Catalan Institute of Oncology-Oncology Master Plan, “the work fits perfectly with the existing evidence, since research into new drugs is carried out by rich countries. And, on the other hand, access by low-income countries to these drugs is limited and delayed.
In this sense, Jesús García-Foncillas, president of the ECO Foundationpoints out that “the numerous advances made in recent decades in the development of new anti-cancer drugs have not been fully or easily transferred to patients. “We must not forget that existing treatments are increasingly more effective, and therefore, the possibility of accessing them largely determines the survival time and quality of life of patients.”
Faced with these challenges, from Fundación ECO, «We advocate the search for formulas that allow more equitable access and agile to oncological medications, such as avoiding the re-evaluation of already approved treatments.
And he adds: “we make ourselves available to the Administrations to identify areas of improvement in access that allow the latest therapeutic innovations to be brought closer to patients.”
The study, adds Marcos-Gragera to Science Media Center “shows that there is, in general, a high correlation between purchasing power and health.”
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