Many agencies are delaying cancer trials and research due to cancer drug shortages, which may have a long-term effect on treatments, CNN reported July 20.
The National Cancer Institute told CNN that at least 174 of its trials may be affected by the shortages. Other institutions have shut down or not begun trials due to lack of drugs.
"We've heard of institutions shutting down many new clinical trials that involve these drugs in shortage," Mark Fleury, PhD, policy principal with the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, told CNN. "Obviously, if you're not doing the research for the next best drug, that's causing ramifications that we may not fully feel for a few years to come."
At least 25 cancer drugs are in shortage right now, according to the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. Two in particular, carboplatin and cisplatin, have severe shortages that have affected cancer patients nationwide. A survey found 93 percent and 70 percent of cancer centers are struggling with shortages of carboplatin and cisplatin, respectively. The FDA recently allowed more cisplatin from a China-based pharmaceutical company to be imported to the U.S. to ease the ongoing cancer drug shortage, but many institutions still struggle to access it.