Romania runs out of Aids drugs

The lives of people with HIV in Romania are being put at risk as the country runs out of drugs to keep them alive, say NGOs, while the government appears to blame the recession.

Activists have been afraid it would happen in the poorest countries of Asia or Africa. But it's happening in Europe instead. In Romania, HIV drugs are running out. People in the regions have been traveling to Bucharest to try to get their supplies, but the capital city's shelves are emptying and from this week, they will be turned away. As the Romanian Aids organisations put it, people with HIV are being sentenced to death.

Some people have had no drugs for over a month now. The reasons for the stock-outs are not entirely clear. Certainly Romania is hit by the recession, but, as an open letter from the EU HIV/Aids Civil Society Forum to the Romanian president, Traian Basescu, and his government said yesterday, other cash-hit European states have managed to keep the medicines available. It is a very serious situation for the 7,000 or so people with HIV in Romania. Antiretroviral drugs keep people alive and well, but those who start the drugs have to stay on the drugs, or the virus in their body will evolve into a drug-resistant strain. And then the drugs they were taking will not work any more. They will need other (more expensive) drugs instead. And for some, the Forum told the government in its letter, time is running out.

In particular those who as youngsters got infected in Romanian hospitals during their early childhood, between 1986 and 1992, are patients who received several drug regimens in the past, and some of them are already receiving their last treatment option. By interrupting their treatment, these people will be at great personal health risk, with the well-known public health implications on top.

The Forum - and the local NGOs - are urging the Romanian government to take steps to restore the drug supply. Money may be short, they say, but it is open to them to negotiate lower prices with the pharmaceutical industry, which they have not done. The letter also asks the government to call in the World Health Organisation for help and advice.

Depriving people of the drugs that will keep them alive is a clear breach, they say, of article 3 of the European Convention of Human Rights.

Two Romanian HIV/Aids NGOs, SENS POZITIV Association and ARAS - the Romanian Association Against AIDS, have set up a petition, here.

Posted by Sarah Boseley 18.14 BST

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/sarah-boseley-global-health/2010/apr/23/hiv-infection-aids 

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Watch House of Numbers and see the Nagel Family talk about adopting their daughter from Romania, her HIV positive test, and the direction they chose to take regarding HIV treatment.

HIV/AIDS - Drug Pipeline Analysis and Market Forecasts to 2016

Published: Apr-2010   Report Code: GDHCPRT086

Report Format: Electronic PDF

 

 

GlobalData's report, “HIV/AIDS – Drug Pipeline Analysis and Market Forecasts to 2016” is an essential source of information and analysis on the global HIV/AIDS market. The report identifies the key trends shaping and driving the global HIV/AIDS market. The report also provides insight on the prevalent competitive landscape and the emerging players expected to bring significant shift in the market positioning of the existing market leaders. Most importantly, the report provides valuable insight on the pipeline products within the global HIV/AIDS sector. GlobalData estimated the HIV/AIDS market was worth $12 billion in 2009. The global Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infection market will continue to grow between 2009 and 2016 at a slower rate due to a series of patent expiries during this period. The growth rate is likely to decline from 2012 onwards due to the impact of the patent expiry of key drugs. The market is characterized by a high unmet need of drugs which can cure the disease. Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART) which requires patients to take different classes of drugs has however succeeded in achieving near zero levels of HIV in infected people. Increased uptake of HAART and increasing awareness (which leads to increased treatment seeking) will drive the market. The pipeline for HIV is strong and consists of more than 250 molecules currently in development for various disease segments.

Scope

• The scope of the report includes:
• Annualized global HIV/AIDS market revenues data from 2001 to 2009, forecast for seven years to 2016.
• Geographies covered in this report are the United States (US), the United Kingdom (UK), Italy, Spain, Germany, France and Japan.
• Pipeline analysis data providing a split across phases by mechanism of action, and the emerging trends. The key classes of mechanism of action include HIV vaccines, Nonnucleoside Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors (NNRTIs), Protease Inhibitors (PIs), Multi-class Combination Products, Nucleoside Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors (NRTIs), CCR5 receptor antagonists, HIV integrase inhibitors, Nucleoside analogues, Viral entry inhibitors, Maturation inhibitors and Fusion Inhibitors.
• Analysis of the current and future market competition in the global HIV/AIDS market. The key market players covered Boehring Ingelheim, Achillion Pharmaceuticals, GlaxoSmithKline, Incyte and Pharmasset, Shire Pharmaceuticals and Tibotec Virco
• Insightful review of the key industry drivers, restraints and challenges. Each trend is independently researched to provide qualitative analysis of its implications.
• The key topics covered include a strategic competitor assessment, market characterization, unmet needs and implications for the future HIV/AIDS market.

Reasons to Buy

• The report will enhance your decision making capability in a more rapid and time sensitive manner. It will allow you to:
• Develop and design your in-licensing and out-licensing strategies through review of pipeline products and technologies and by identifying companies with the most robust pipeline.
• Develop business strategies by understanding the trends shaping and driving the global HIV/AIDS market.
• Drive revenues by understanding key trends, innovative products and technologies, market segments and companies likely to impact the global HIV/AIDS market in future.
• Formulate effective sales and marketing strategies by understanding the competitive landscape and by analyzing the performance of various competitors.
• Identify emerging players with potentially strong product portfolio and create effective counter-strategies to gain competitive advantage.
• Organize your sales and marketing efforts by identifying the market categories and segments that present maximum opportunities for consolidations, investments and strategic partnerships.
• What’s the next big thing in the global HIV/AIDS market landscape? – Identify, understand and capitalize.

Watch House of Numbers to see more on HIV Drugs.