As health care providers across the United States grapple with ongoing shortages of cancer drugs, experts are sounding the alarm about drugs that are becoming harder to obtain.
On September 12, the Biden administration announced that the cisplatin supply had been restored to almost 100% of pre-shortage levels, and supplies of carboplatin and methotrexate were increasing.
However, all 3 drugs were still in short supply at many cancer centers last month, according to a National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) survey.4 Meanwhile, shortages of vinblastine and dacarbazine have become a concern.
The shortages mean these patients may not be treated with the best therapy, added Lia Gore, MD, head of pediatric hematology/oncology/bone marrow transplant at Children’s Hospital Colorado.
