Centre plans to phase out HIV drug
After much dilly-dallying, the Centre has finally agreed to do away with Stavudine, having long-term irreversible side-effects, with a safer drug for HIV patients, even though the switchover will cost the government double the amount.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) had in 2010 recommended to phase out Stavudine due to its severe side effects.
The technical resource group of the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) that met recently has worked on a new treatment protocol according to which all new patients should be initiated with zidovudine (AZT), as it is less toxic and equally effective and just twice as expensive as Stavudine or d4T. However, those who are anaemic have been recommended to start with tenofovir (TDF) based regimen.
“Under the National programme the preferred regimen for antiretroviral therapy (ART) initiation is Zidovudine regime and not Stavduine now. Only those who are anaemic and got toxicity are provided Tenofovir as an alternate first line regimen,” said a senior official.
Experts say that by 2013 Stavudine is expected to be completely phased out from India.
Out of 4.60,000 total HIV positive patients who are on ART about 45 per cent take Stavudine and 55 per cent are on Zidovudine. So far, 1,500 patients have been shifted from Stavudine to alternative drug after they were found to be developing toxicity.
“Since we have got nearly 2,10,000 patients on stavudine this phase out can happen only once the procurement of the Tenofovir is done for these patients. We are in the process of initiating the procurement,” said Dr B.B. Rewari, national programme officer, ART.
For existing patients a phase out plan has been developed whereby all patients who have been on stavudine for 6 months-24 months will be shifted to Tenofovir or Zidovudine. While, the government spends `5,500 per patient annually, the cost is expected to go up to `8,000 per person per year after shifting the new drug regimen is rolled out.
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