The US is facing a record shortage of drugs to fight cancer and other life-threatening illnesses due to supply chain issues and manufacturing shutdowns, American media reported on Wednesday.
The cancer-fighting drugs are among hundreds on the shortage list, which also includes heart bypass surgery medication, antibiotics, and children’s Tylenol, the report said, RIA Novosti reported.
Generic forms of chemotherapy to treat lung, breast, bladder and ovarian cancers have also intensified concerns, the report added.
Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Professor Amanda Fader called the situation a “public health emergency” in light of the number of chemotherapy agents facing shortages, according to the report.
The White House and Congress are looking at the faltering generic drug market, which accounts for about 90 percent of domestic prescriptions, the report said.
The Joe Biden administration has also assembled a team to reduce the pharmaceutical supply chain’s heavy reliance on medicines and drug ingredients from India and China, the report added.
