Indian Medicines For 4 Rare Diseases Cut Treatment Cost By Nearly 100 Times
NDTV
The treatment for Tyrosinemia type 1, which used to require an annual expenditure of Rs 2.2 crore to Rs 6.5 crore, now costs Rs 2.5 lakh for the same duration.
Aided by government agencies, Indian drug companies have, in just one year, managed to develop medicines for four rare diseases that cut down their cost of treatment by as much as 100 times. Most of these diseases are genetic and many of the patients are children.
The treatment for Tyrosinemia type 1, for instance, which used to require an annual expenditure of Rs 2.2 crore to Rs 6.5 crore, now costs Rs 2.5 lakh for the same duration. If untreated, a child dies of the disease by the age of 10. The drug for treating the disease is called Nitisinone.
The three other rare diseases are Gaucher's Disease, which results in liver or spleen enlargement, bone pain and fatigue; Wilson's Disease, which causes a copper deposit in the liver and psychiatric symptoms; and Dravet/ Lennox Gastaut Syndrome, which causes complex seizure syndromes.
