Cancer Patients in Kazakhstan Face Critical Drug Shortages for Months

Patients in Kazakhstan, including residents of the Aktobe region, are reporting a severe shortage of vital medications, with some drugs unavailable for over two months.

A concerned citizen highlighted the crisis, stating that her grandmother undergoing cancer treatment has been unable to obtain the drug "Capecitabine" for two months. She emphasized that other essential medications are also missing, stressing the critical need for timely treatment for cancer patients.

The state-owned distributor "SK-Pharmacy" has responded to the growing concerns. The company asserts that it procures medicines based on requests from medical organizations and adjusts shipments according to the actual needs of the regions. Centralized supplies are typically completed by the second ten-day period of each month.

Officials acknowledged facing "difficulties" due to a lack of suppliers or problems with foreign manufacturers. They claim these issues are being resolved jointly with the Ministry of Health, including through one-time imports of unregistered drugs when necessary.

According to "SK-Pharmacy," a new shipment of medications is expected next week. Drugs such as "Pipecuronium Bromide," "Perampanel," "Insulin Aspart," "Abemaciclib," and "Sodium Valproate" will begin arriving at the distributor's hubs.

Regarding specific oncology drugs that have been widely requested, the distributor reported that "Anastrozole," "Enzalutamide," and "Lapatinib" have already been delivered to hubs and are being shipped to medical facilities. Other medications, including "Zapikar," "Tobramycin," "Treksoma," "Tetracosactide," and "Isotroy," are scheduled to arrive at hubs next week and will be distributed to patients after completing standard procedures.

The statement also addressed complaints from cancer patients about the absence of the drug "Androcur."