The falsified or substandard medical productsintended for the treatment of malaria, pneumonia or other diseases kill thousands of young people around the world. These are the disturbing conclusions of a study published in The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene on March 11, revealed by The Guardian. Nearly 250,000 children are said to be victims each year. Joel Breman, a scientist at the National Institutes of Health in Maryland (USA), talks about “murders by fake drugs”.
“Substandard or falsified medical products are inherently very difficult to detect. They are often designed to look identical to the genuine product and may not cause obvious adverse reactions, although they often do not adequately treat the disease or condition for which they are intended”, defines the World Health Organization (WHO).
An urgent public health problem
In this new report, researchers warn of the rise of these drugs around the world. Because in addition to their direct consequences, they constitute one of the main factors of resistance to antimicrobials, fueling the development of superbugs. “This is an urgent public health issue and we need to take action”warns Joel Breman interviewed by The Guardian.
Overall, in low- and middle-income countries, up to 10% of medicines are falsified or of inferior quality. And the problem is getting worse. In 2018, the pharmaceutical company Pfizer, which participated in the research, identified 95 counterfeit products in 113 countries. In 2008, it found just 29 out of 75. Most deaths also occur in countries with high demand for drugs and poor oversight, allowing counterfeit drugs to enter the market. Some products, originating in China or India, thus contain printer ink, paint or even arsenic, relays The Guardian.
Alerts and proposals
The publication of the study coincides with the news, since last month, the WHO warned of a fake cancer drug in Europe and America. Designed to look like Iclusig (for chronic myeloid leukemia and acute lymphoblastic leukemia), the counterfeit treatment contained only paracetamol.
The researchers therefore call for a urgent international effort to fight against this “fake drug pandemic”, and submit a series of recommendations. First, they ask the United Nations that governments strengthen their surveillance, so that 90% of the country’s medicines are of good quality.
They also propose a world treaty, which through extradition agreements, would make it possible to judge the suspects in the countries where they sell their counterfeits. The treaty would thus encompass illegal online pharmacies, which are a growing part of the problem, say doctors. Finally, there is “an immediate need for quick and easy tests that doctors could use to check the quality of drugs”says Joel Breman.
Read also :
- In Africa, fake drugs are still widespread
- Malaria, tuberculosis: the threat of fake drugs
