Go Ad-Free
logoThe People's Perspective on Medicine

Doctors Lead Protest Against High Cancer Drug Prices

Drug companies have finally infuriated cancer doctors to the point that they have started a movement to lower high cancer drug prices. Want to join them?

The pharmaceutical industry has finally gone too far. Drug companies have bitten the hands that feed them.

Oncologists are furious about the unconscionable costs of cancer drugs. In the Mayo Clinic Proceedings (online, July 23, 2015), 118 leading cancer doctors express outrage that cancer drug prices have become unaffordable. They point out that “the average price of new cancer drugs increased 5- to 10-fold over 15 years, to more than $100,000 per year in 2012.”

On the Front Lines of Cancer Treatment

These oncologists are the ones who write prescriptions for increasingly unaffordable medicines. Drug companies rely on these physicians to fill their coffers with billions of dollars and keep the bottom line looking good for investors. But by jacking up prices into the stratosphere these manufacturers have pushed the medical community over the edge.

Oncologists recognize that patients might have to choose between potentially life-saving therapies and the basic needs of their families for food, housing, transportation and education. These cancer specialists are frustrated that “Because of costs, about 10% to 20% of patients with cancer do not take the prescribed treatment or compromise it.”

What’s more, there is no relief in sight. Each new cancer drug seems to be priced higher than the last one. It is not unusual for a year of treatment with an innovative medication to cost more than a luxury car.

Examples of Cancer Drug Prices

Keytruda (pembrolizumab), for example, was approved last year to treat recurrent melanoma, a deadly skin cancer. The estimated cost of treatment: $150,000 a year. That’s also the price tag on Revlimid (lenalidomide), a drug used to treat the blood cancer multiple myeloma. A drug for treating lung cancer, Zykadia (ceritinib), costs even more, at around $13,200 per month.

Who can afford these prices? Even insurance companies cannot keep on paying such bills and stay in business. Many are passing more of the costs along to their customers.

The government is feeling the pinch as well. Medicare and Medicaid will see their costs skyrocket over the next decade if prices continue to escalate. We all pay for Medicare and Medicaid, so this directly affects you and everyone you know.

When pharmaceutical companies are questioned about exorbitant cancer drug prices, they defend them by pointing to investor expectations. In recent years, many of their best-selling products have lost patent protection and become available as generics. There have been few breakthroughs in other areas of medicine, so increasingly drug companies have turned to cancer medications to boost their bottom lines.

The Protest Begins

The oncologists writing in the Mayo Clinic Proceedings are calling for action. They urge their colleagues, patients and the public to sign an online petition at Change.org (here is the link for “Protest High Cancer Drug Prices”). The more signatures this petition gathers, the more leverage patient advocates will have in trying to rein in the out-of-control pharmaceutical industry.

Cancer Drug Prices Are Lower in Canada

The doctors point out that prices in Canada are roughly half those in the U.S. and are asking the government to permit patients to import their own cancer drugs. The oncologists are also encouraging legislation that would permit Medicare to negotiate drug prices.

Perhaps you think this doesn’t affect you because you don’t have cancer. If you worry about Alzheimer’s disease or any other devastating condition you need to pay attention. The prices of prescription drugs for cancer could be an indication of where prices for other medicines are headed.

If there were a truly helpful drug to treat dementia, we anticipate the pharmaceutical industry would charge over $100,000 per patient per year. With over 5 million people suffering from Alzheimer’s disease that would create an annual bill of $500,000,000,000. Sustainable? We don’t think so.

It is time to protest high cancer drug prices. Here is the link to add your name.

Share your thoughts below and please vote on this article at the top of the page.

Rate this article
star-fullstar-emptystar-fullstar-emptystar-fullstar-emptystar-fullstar-emptystar-fullstar-emptystar-fullstar-emptystar-fullstar-emptystar-fullstar-emptystar-fullstar-emptystar-fullstar-empty
4.8- 44 ratings
About the Author
Joe Graedon is a pharmacologist who has dedicated his career to making drug information understandable to consumers. His best-selling book, The People’s Pharmacy, was published in 1976 and led to a syndicated newspaper column, syndicated public radio show and web site. In 2006, Long Island University awarded him an honorary doctorate as “one of the country's leading drug experts for the consumer.”.
Tired of the ads on our website?

Now you can browse our website completely ad-free for just $5 / month. Stay up to date on breaking health news and support our work without the distraction of advertisements.

Browse our website ad-free
Join over 150,000 Subscribers at The People's Pharmacy

We're empowering you to make wise decisions about your own health, by providing you with essential health information about both medical and alternative treatment options.