Mumbai: A new study from the Tata Memorial Centre has highlighted that many modern cancer medicines, especially immunotherapy, are far too expensive for most people around the world, including India.The Tata Memorial Centre –ACTREC study, published in ‘Head & Neck’ medical journal, has mentioned that a six-month course of immunotherapy drug, pembrolizumab, in India costs nearly 80 times the average monthly income of most Indians.
Pembrolizumab is used to treat multiple cancers, including of head and neck. Immunotherapy boosts the body’s natural defenses to fight cancer, often using substances made by living organisms. It is a relatively new sphere of cancer treatment, with medicines costing lakhs for a month’s course.The research also found that another immunotherapy drug, Nivolumab, costs more than 20 times the average monthly income for a similar duration of treatment. The research said the affordability crisis in cancer care is global. “Even in the US and the UK, such immunotherapy drugs are deemed financially burdensome,” said the researchers. The team compared the prices of targeted therapy and immunotherapy drugs across seven countries, including India, the US, the UK, Pakistan and Bangladesh.Head and neck cancers account for almost 40% of the total cancer burden in India. Many patients are diagnosed at advanced stages. While immunotherapy has shown promise, the finances pose a challenge.The researchers also found the money needed to treat one patient with pembrolizumab in India could instead treat 18 to 22 patients with a lower-cost targeted therapy. While these cheaper medicines may not have shown the same efficacy as immunotherapy, they allow many more to receive treatment. Dr Arjun Singh, lead author from Tata Memorial Centre, said: “Immunotherapy is not just expensive—it is completely out of reach for most families. In India, a 6-month course of treatment can cost more than several years of income.” Senior author and ACTREC director Dr Pankaj Chaturvedi added, “When most people pay for treatment from their own pocket, such high costs can push families into poverty.”
