Saturday, October 15, 2005

Flu: Indian company plans to make generic

A major Indian pharmaceutical company has said it plans to bring a generic version of the anti-influenza drug Tamiflu to market early next year, thus filling any potential shortages in the event of a bird flu epidemic. (via Yahoo).

Um -- what if a mutated H5N1 virus is resistant to Tamiflu? Already there is one report from Vietnam that a human victim might show resistance to this drug. In any case, Cipla (which pioneered the generic production of AZT, once the main drug to combat HIV) is to be commended for this, for sure. However, Tamiflu alone is not sufficient protection.

The Avian Flu blog has an update on the situation in Europe, with some sombre words:

I can't help but feel like the authorities are in denial and are focused on the wrong "measures". The avian flu virus cannot be contained at this stage: it will be with us for a long time. Import bans and border checks are symbolic, more than anything. And despite the statements of some politicians, we can do very little "to ensure the virus does not mutate". These are the facts. What is important is that we accept this reality and deal with it in a responsible way, by being as ready as we can for the likely emergency.

No comments: