Counterfeit Cancer Medication Found in U.S.
A counterfeit version of Avastin cancer therapy has been found in the U.S. announced manufacturer Roche Holding AG, a Swiss company.
Vials of the medication were tested by Roche and found to not contain the active ingredients, according to Roche’s Genentech unit, reported The Wall Street Journal.
Images of counterfeit Avastin courtesy of Genentech.
Health providers should verify product authenticity by
comparing lot numbers provided by the FDA.
A counterfeit version of Avastin cancer therapy has been found in the U.S. announced manufacturer Roche Holding AG, a Swiss company.
Vials of the medication were tested by Roche and found to not contain the active ingredients, according to Roche’s Genentech unit, reported The Wall Street Journal.
Genentech has asked health care providers to report suspected counterfeits to the FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations.
“Counterfeiting a cancer drug is the height of evil – it takes advantage of a patient in their most vulnerable moment, and removes the promise of survival,” said PSM Board Member Dr. Bryan Liang.
Potential counterfeits may be labeled as Avastin 400 mg/16 mL, with the lot numbers B86017, B6011 or B6010. It said counterfeits don’t look the same as the authentic Avastin, which says Genentech on the packaging and has a six-digit lot number.
Counterfeit Avastin caused the hospitalization of 61 patients in Shanghai in September 2010. The medication also tested by Roche was found to be false, and to contain no active ingredients, as well as excessive quantities of bacteria. Defendants admitted the medication was only saline measured by hand into falsely-labeled bottles in counterfeiters’ homes.
Li Xiaoqin, an unlicensed drug seller in Shanghai, admitted to commissioning Wu Gousong, a counterfeit drug producer from Heiolongjiang Province, to produce the fake Avastin to sell to the Shanghai Ruijin-AmMed Cancer Center. In total, eleven defendants pleaded guilty to producing and selling the fake cancer medications in Shanghai.